Raimond V ruled Orange from 1340 until his death in 1393, a reign that coincided almost exactly with the worst decades of the Hundred Years' War and the Black Death's repeated waves through Provence. The principality's billon coinage during this period reflects chronic silver shortages that plagued all Rhodanian mints — alloy quality varied considerably across the issue, and examples struck toward the end of the reign often show noticeably degraded silver content.
Orange itself was a curious anomaly: a small sovereign enclave deep within French-controlled territory, its minting rights fiercely defended by successive princes against Valois encroachment.
Raimond V ruled Orange from 1340 until his death in 1393, a reign that coincided almost exactly with the worst decades of the Hundred Years' War and the Black Death's repeated waves through Provence. The principality's billon coinage during this period reflects chronic silver shortages that plagued all Rhodanian mints — alloy quality varied considerably across the issue, and examples struck toward the end of the reign often show noticeably degraded silver content.
Orange itself was a curious anomaly: a small sovereign enclave deep within French-controlled territory, its minting rights fiercely defended by successive princes against Valois encroachment.