Gregory XIV held the papacy for less than ten months, from December 1590 to October 1591, making his Bologna doppie among the shortest-reigned papal gold issues of the sixteenth century. His pontificate was consumed almost entirely by the Wars of the League, specifically his aggressive support of the Catholic League against Henri IV of France — a political commitment that drained papal finances and left little time for the administrative machinery of the mints.
The brevity of the reign keeps surviving examples scarce in any condition.
Gregory XIV held the papacy for less than ten months, from December 1590 to October 1591, making his Bologna doppie among the shortest-reigned papal gold issues of the sixteenth century. His pontificate was consumed almost entirely by the Wars of the League, specifically his aggressive support of the Catholic League against Henri IV of France — a political commitment that drained papal finances and left little time for the administrative machinery of the mints.
The brevity of the reign keeps surviving examples scarce in any condition.