Matthias II's grip on Bohemia was contested from the start — he wrested the crown from his brother Rudolf II in 1611 through a coalition of Protestant estates who expected religious concessions in return. The Kuttenberg (Kutná Hora) mint had been one of the most productive silver operations in central Europe since the medieval bonanza of the Bohemian silver mines, though by the early seventeenth century output had declined sharply from its medieval peak. These large double thalers were prestige pieces as much as currency, struck in limited numbers for ceremonial distribution and diplomatic use.
Matthias died in 1619 without a direct heir, triggering the succession crisis that ignited the Thirty Years' War within months of his death.
Matthias II's grip on Bohemia was contested from the start — he wrested the crown from his brother Rudolf II in 1611 through a coalition of Protestant estates who expected religious concessions in return. The Kuttenberg (Kutná Hora) mint had been one of the most productive silver operations in central Europe since the medieval bonanza of the Bohemian silver mines, though by the early seventeenth century output had declined sharply from its medieval peak. These large double thalers were prestige pieces as much as currency, struck in limited numbers for ceremonial distribution and diplomatic use.
Matthias died in 1619 without a direct heir, triggering the succession crisis that ignited the Thirty Years' War within months of his death.