2 Thalers - Theoderic II of Bettendorf

Theoderic II ruled the Bishopric of Worms during a period of acute confessional tension in the Rhineland, with Lutheran influence pressing hard against ecclesiastical authority throughout the 1560s and 70s. The decision to strike large multiple-thaler pieces was as much a political statement of institutional permanence as it was a monetary one — episcopal mints frequently ramped up prestigious silver coinage precisely when their temporal power felt most contested.

The Davenport reference GT I#9943 places this among the German territorial thalers rather than the imperial series, reflecting Worms's independent minting authority under the Holy Roman Empire's complex episcopal privileges.