Meinhard II acquired Tyrol through inheritance in 1258 and spent the following decades systematically consolidating one of the most strategically positioned territories in the Alps, controlling the Brenner Pass and extracting considerable revenue from trans-Alpine trade. The Zwanziger — named for its count of twenty to the mark — was central to that fiscal infrastructure, circulating widely enough that it influenced monetary conventions in neighboring Bavarian and Italian markets.
Meinhard died in 1295 having never received the royal title he aggressively pursued from the Habsburgs, despite years of political maneuvering.
Meinhard II acquired Tyrol through inheritance in 1258 and spent the following decades systematically consolidating one of the most strategically positioned territories in the Alps, controlling the Brenner Pass and extracting considerable revenue from trans-Alpine trade. The Zwanziger — named for its count of twenty to the mark — was central to that fiscal infrastructure, circulating widely enough that it influenced monetary conventions in neighboring Bavarian and Italian markets.
Meinhard died in 1295 having never received the royal title he aggressively pursued from the Habsburgs, despite years of political maneuvering.