Coat of arms of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. The Saxon horse of the House of Welf was another important symbol, also used by the Kingdom of Hanover, which shared the same dynastic origins.
History
The Dukes of Welf ruled the Duchy of Saxony until 1180, after a conflict between the Welfs and Hohenstaufens ended in the latter's victory. The Duchy of Saxony, which was the largest in the Holy Roman Empire, was partitioned into many smaller states. In 1235 the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg was awarded to the grandson of the last Saxon duke, thereby continuing the Welf dynasty.
As was common in those days possessions were partitioned among all sons. In 1269 Brunswick-Lüneburg was split between Brunswick and Lüneburg, although both lines kept the ducal title. Over the years Lüneburg split and reunited several times and eventually became the Electorate of Hanover in 1692. Brunswick on the other hand remained more or less the same. The dukes of Brunswick moved their residence to Wolfenbüttel in 1435, hence the name Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. In 1754 the dukes returned to Brunswick.
Geographically Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel was scattered across multiple exclaves mostly bordering the Electorate and later Kingdom of Hanover.
After the Napoleonic Wars Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel became a duchy in the German Confederation. As its capital was in Brunswick it was simply known as the Duchy of Brunswick.
Brunswick joined the North German Confederation in 1866 after it had sided with Prussia in the Austro-Prussian War of the same year. That allegiance was a bit remarkable because of the strong family ties of the dukes of Brunswick and the kings of Hanover, who saw their kingdom being annexed by Prussia. When the last duke of the Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel line died in 1884, Prussia refused to accept the Hanover line to succeed him despite being first in line. As a result Brunswick became a regency until 1913. That year Ernst Aigust, grandson of the last King of Hanover married Kaiser Wilhelm's daughter, swore allegiance to the German Empire and became Duke of Brunswick. He abdicated in 1918 in the aftermath of World War I when the November Revolution ended the monarchies of Germany.
After the Second World War the former territories of Hanover and Brunswick were reunited again to form the federal state of Lower Saxony.
Currency
Brunswick's currency history is very similar to neighbouring Hanover. Its Thaler was divided in 24 Groschen, 36 Mariengroschen or 288 Pfennige. The Matthiasgroschen or Mattier was worth 4 Pfennige.
The silver content of these coins was based on 3 different standards regarding the Cologne Mark, a weight unit of approx. 233.856 grams. The almost pure silver coins of 2 through 24 Mariengroschen were based on the 12 Thaler standard, and the small denomination coinage of 4 and 6 Pfennige and 1 Mariengroschen on the 14 Thaler standard. Next to these there was also a Groschen coinage following the Conventionsthaler standard where 1 Cologne Mark = 10 Conventionsthaler = 13⅓ Thaler. And the Speciesthaler was 1/9th of a Cologne Mark, making it therefore worth twice as much as the 24 Mariengroschen coins.
All in all this relatively tiny German state made things far from easy until it joined the Prussian-led monetary union in 1834 which was on a 14 Thaler standard. In 1857 this was slightly adjusted by setting 30 Vereinsthalers equal to a metric pound (500g) and in 1874 the old coins were replaced by the German Mark at a rate of 3 Mark per old Vereinsthaler.
Catalogue
Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (1269-1815)
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/brunswick_wolfenbuttel_principality-1.html
Duchy of Brunswick (1815-1918)
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/brunswick_wolfenbuttel_duchy-1.html
