1 Pfennig - Christian Frederick Charles Alexander

Christian Frederick Charles Alexander, the last Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach, ceded his territory to Prussia in 1791 — just ten years after this coin was struck — in a private deal negotiated without consulting his subjects, in exchange for a Prussian pension. That a margraviate capable of issuing its own silver coinage, however fractional, could simply be sold off by its ruler speaks to the fragmented sovereignty of the late Holy Roman Empire. At 0.23 grams, the silver content was nearly negligible even by contemporary standards, yet the Ansbach mint maintained the denomination regardless.