Currency Timeline

06/02/1497: After Spain was united by the marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castille, they reformed the monetary system to combine their two regions together. After the discovery of silver in the Spanish colonies in the Americas, the Spanish Pieces of Eight are established as a competitor to the Joachimsthaler. The prolific output of the Spanish mines allow the Spanish Dollar to replace the Joachimsthaler as the main trading currency. It is worth 0.931 fine or 25.563 g fine silver.

1566: The Spanish Escudo, a gold coin, is introduced to be worth 16 reales.

1728: Silver content of Spanish Dollar is decreased to 0.9167 fine.

1754: Silver content of Spanish dollar is decreased to 0.9028 fine, but is probably only around 0.89 fine.

1486: Originally called "Guldengroschen", silver coins equivalent to the gold coins "Gulden" are first minted. These introduces the idea of a reliable silver coin of high worth that can fulfill large volumes of trade.

1566: Law of 1566 in the Holy Roman Empire fixes the Reichsthaler at 0.875 fine. The Reichsthaler is introduced as the Roman Empire's version of a standard silver coin. Smaller German states would mint the Reichsthaler along with their own coin of smaller denominations. Since each state would create their own system of subdivisions, the Reichsthaler became established as a way to track the worth of coins.

1754: The Reichsthaler is replaced by the Conventionsthaler.

1868: The Law of June 25, 1868 retires the Spanish Dollar for the Spanish Peseta.

1741: The first Maria Theresa Thaler is struck based on the Reichthaler at around 25.98 grams of silver. The Maria Theresa dollar is a Conventionsthaler: due to its intricate design and lettered edge, it is more immune to counterfeits than the Spanish Dollar. The silver content of the Spanish Dollar have also been steadily decreasing over the centuries. The Maria Theresa Thaler is considered a more stable alternative to the Spanish Dollar as an international currency.

1751: The Maria Theresa Thaler is fixed at 0.8333 fine, or 23.39 grams of silver. Standards for the Maria Theresa Thaler are more strictly held than previous silver coins, and the silver content of the Thaler does not change from this point.

09/19/1857: The Maria Theresa Thaler is declared an official trade coin by Austria. In trading partners of Austria without an official state currency, such as Arabia and certain African nations, the Maria Theresa Thaler are the established currency in the economy.

10/31/1858: The Maria Theresa Thaler is no longer used as currency in Austria.

1935: Mussolini forces Austria to hand over dies for the Marie Teresa Thaler, ending the Austrian monopoly on MTT production: other European countries, from Italy to France and Britain, begin to produce the MTT.

1650: The silver content of coins from the Peruvian mint are discovered to have not met standards of the Spanish Dollar. This is a major scandal that harms the reputation of the Spanish Dollar In 1650, a declaration is issued to deny the Peruvian coins status as currency, and they are to be minted again in Spain. The debased Peruvian coins, however, continue to be widely circulated in the Americas. The debased coins are often used for fraud.

1518: Count of Schlick mints the first Joachimsthaler in the mining town Joachimsthal. They are slightly altered versions of the Guldengroschen, containing 25.998 grams of silver or 400.99 grains of silver. Due to their reliable silver content, they are extremely successful and widely used in European trade. International currencies after the Joachimsthaler inherit the name "Thaler".

1497-1868: The Spanish Dollar, or the Real de a Ocho (Pieces of 8) is used in the Spanish Empire. The Ordinance of Medina del Campo establishes the real as the main Spanish currency. Medina del Campo is a well known site for a popular money fair at the time. The Law of June 25, 1868 retires the Real as an official currency.

1566-1754: The Reichthaler is established and used within the Holy Roman Empire.

1741-1961: The Maria Theresa Thaler is widely used in the Middle East and Africa as a trade currency. Austria is a major European power at this time. The country trades at a high rate with other Mediterranean and Middle Eastern countries, and it has access to plentiful amounts of silver from Bohemia and Tyrol. Large quantities of the Maria Theresa Thaler are thus minted and circulates to Austria's trading partners.