Johann Konrad II von Reinach-Hirzbach served as Prince-Bishop of Basel from 1705 until his death in 1737, presiding over a diocese whose temporal authority was already under sustained pressure from the surrounding Swiss cantons. The Bishopric's minting activity by 1718 was modest and geographically constrained — the prince-bishops had lost direct control of the city of Basel itself to the reformed canton in 1529, forcing episcopal administration and coinage to operate from Porrentruy in the Ajoie region. Billon issues of this period circulated in a monetary environment crowded with competing canton and city coinages, limiting their reach.
Johann Konrad II von Reinach-Hirzbach served as Prince-Bishop of Basel from 1705 until his death in 1737, presiding over a diocese whose temporal authority was already under sustained pressure from the surrounding Swiss cantons. The Bishopric's minting activity by 1718 was modest and geographically constrained — the prince-bishops had lost direct control of the city of Basel itself to the reformed canton in 1529, forcing episcopal administration and coinage to operate from Porrentruy in the Ajoie region. Billon issues of this period circulated in a monetary environment crowded with competing canton and city coinages, limiting their reach.