½ Real – Prince-bishopric of Liege

In 1629, the Prince-Bishopric of Liège found itself in a precarious monetary situation, caught in the crosscurrents of the wider European "Kipper und Wipper" crisis. This was a period of severe currency debasement and monetary instability, particularly within the Holy Roman Empire, where various states competitively reduced the silver content of their coinage to fund expenditures, often related to the Thirty Years' War. While Liège maintained a degree of political neutrality in the conflict, it could not escape the economic contagion. The flood of debased foreign coins, especially from neighboring German states, circulated within its borders, driving out Liège's own better-quality specie and causing inflation, confusion in trade, and a loss of confidence in the monetary system.

The response from the Liège authorities, under Prince-Bishop Ferdinand of Bavaria, was a continuous but struggling effort at monetary regulation. The government issued repeated ordinances aimed at controlling the exchange rates of the myriad coins in circulation and forbidding the import and circulation of the most debased foreign currency. However, these measures were largely reactive and difficult to enforce. The economic reality was that Liège's own minting activity was limited, and its monetary sovereignty was undermined by its geographic and economic position as a crossroads for trade and finance, making it highly susceptible to external monetary pressures.

Consequently, the currency situation in Liège in 1629 was one of fragmented and unstable circulation. Merchants and the populace had to navigate a complex mix of officially valued coins, heavily debated foreign issues, and a likely thriving black market for currency exchange. This instability created a drag on the economy of the prince-bishopric, increasing transaction costs and fostering uncertainty, even as its political leadership sought to assert control over a monetary environment that was fundamentally shaped by forces beyond its borders.