Flag of Reuss-Gera, also known as Reuss Younger Line. The flag of the Elder Line was the horizontal version of this one, so pretty much the same as the modern German flag.
History
In the Middle Ages Thuringia was an eastern frontier of the holy Roman Empire the local Slavic population were christianised by German newcomers. During the reign of Emperor Heinrich I of Hohenstaufen a local chief was made count of a territory in eastern Thuringia. The new count was so grateful that all his male descendants would be named Heinrich. What was even more remarkable was their numbering system. All Heinrichs were numbered in chronological order until the 100th was born and then it reverted to 1. A younger branch of the family applied a new variation of this theme by resetting the numbering with the start of each century. The House of Reuss was at least not bothered by contemporary conventions, to say the least.
The name Reuss was only used from about 1300. One of the countless Heinrichs (but he was a count, pun intended) married the granddaughter of King Daniel of Galicia, which gave him the nickname Der Reusse (The Ruthenian), a name linked to the Kievan Rus and cognate with the word Russian.
Map of the German Confederation (1815-1866), where the Reuss principalities can be found just north of Bavaria and west of Saxony.
As was common practice in those days was to split inheritances amongst multiple sons and such happened to Reuss as well several times. In 1244 the county was split in three parts at Gera, Weida and Plauen but reunited after only the Plauen dynasty survived. In 1564 the county was split into an Elder, Middle and Younger Line (these were led by Heinrich XIV, XV and XVI, in that order). In 1616 the Middle Line became extinct and reunited with the Elder Line that would remain that way until 1918 and was also known as Reuss-Greiz. The Elder Line became a principality in 1778.
Detailed map of the Thuringian states within the German Empire (1871-1918), showing the Reuss principalities in two shades of pink, along with Ernestine Saxon states and the two Schwarzburg principalities.
The Younger Line settled in Gera and split itself into four parts of which the others were based in Lobenstein, Ebersdorf and Schleiz. In 1802 the last count of Gera died and the other Heinrichs decided to share the regency. Then in 1824 the Lobenstein line became extinct after which it passed to Ebersdorf, which line itself ended in 1848. The result was that the Schleiz line became count of the entire Younger Line territories. As they settled in the town of Gera, the Younger Line was named Reuss-Gera, but some sources also call it Reuss-Schleiz to name it after the family branch that ruled it. The smaller the state, the more confusing its history.
The Reuss principalities joined the German Empire in 1871, despite Prince Heinrich XXII of the Elder Line being fiercely anti-Prussian. In 1902 the Younger Line assumed the regency of the Elder Line as its new prince Heinrich XXIV was considered unfit to rule. The monarchies ended in 1918 and the Reuss territories were reunited in 1919. In 1920 they were merged with Ernestine Saxon and Schwarzburg territories to form the Free State of Thuringia in the Weimar Republic, and a federal state of Germany with the same name was reinstated in 1990 after East Germany was reunited with its western neighbour.
Currency
The states of Reuss followed the monetary system of Saxony for most of its history. From the 16th century a Thaler was worth 24 Groschen, 72 Kreuzer, 288 Pfennige or 576 Heller. After a few small devaluations the Conventionsthaler was introduced in 1764. The Conventionsthaler was set at 1/10 of a Cologne Mark (233.86g) of pure silver and worth 1⅓ regular Thaler. Coins of ⅔ Thaler were named Gulden and worth ½ Conventionsthaler.
In 1838 Reuss joined a monetary union agreed in Saxony's capital Dresden based on the Prussian Thaler. There were 14 of these Thalers in a Cologne Mark and it was divided in 30 Silbergroschen each of 12 Pfennige. Shortly after the German unification in 1871 the German Mark replaced the Thaler at a rate of 3 Mark per Thaler. The two remaining Reuss principalities issued a few higher denomination Mark coins but with such low mintages that they probably hardly circulated, if at all.
Catalogue
Elder Line
Reuss-Obergreiz (1660-1918)
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/reuss_obergreiz-1.html
Reuss-Greiz
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/reuss_greiz-1.html
Reuss-Untergreiz
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/reuss_untergreiz-1.html
Younger Line
Reuss-Schleiz (1802-1918)
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/reuss_schleiz-1.html
Reuss-Gera (until 1802)
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/reuss_gera-1.html
Reuss-Ebersdorf (until 1824)
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/reuss_ebersdorf-1.html
Reuss-Lobenstein-Ebersdorf (1824-1848)
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/reuss_lobenstein_ebersdorf_principality-1.html
Reuss-Lobenstein (until 1824)
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/reuss_lobenstein-1.html
