1 Stüber - Ernest William

Bentheim-Steinfurt was a divided county for much of the seventeenth century, split between the Bentheim and Steinfurt lines, and coins attributable to a single count with confidence are relatively uncommon in the surviving record. Ernest William ruled Steinfurt from 1643 until his death in 1693, presiding over a territory caught between Dutch and Imperial spheres of influence during the prolonged aftermath of the Thirty Years' War. Small silver divisional coinage of this type circulated largely in local markets, and the Kennepohl reference remains the primary scholarly authority for attributing the minor issues of the Westphalian counts.