1 Vereinsthaler – Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe

In 1865, the currency situation in the Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe was defined by its participation in the German monetary unions of the mid-19th century. The principality had abandoned its own specific coinage and fully adopted the Vereinsthaler system established by the Dresden Coinage Convention of 1838. This meant its official currency was the North German Thaler, a large silver coin, which was divisible into 30 Groschen, each of 12 Pfennig. This system provided stability and facilitated trade within the German Confederation by creating a standardized monetary area alongside most other German states.

However, this formal system existed alongside a practical reality of currency circulation. While the Vereinsthaler was the legal standard, various other German state coins of equivalent weight and fineness circulated freely within Schaumburg-Lippe. Furthermore, the gold-based Pistole and even foreign coins like the French Franc were also in use for larger transactions, reflecting the region's commercial connections. The monetary landscape was therefore somewhat heterogeneous, with the Vereinsthaler serving as the accounting unit amidst a mix of accepted physical specie.

This complex but functional system was on the cusp of major change. The Austro-Prussian War of 1866 would soon reshape the political map, with Schaumburg-Lippe siding with Prussia. The Prussian victory led to the principality's accession to the North German Confederation in 1867, which promptly initiated a transition toward a new, uniform currency. Thus, the 1865 situation represents the final years of the old Germanic monetary order, as the principality stood poised to adopt the Prussian-led Thaler system and, eventually, the unified Goldmark of the German Empire in the 1870s.