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Message:: [QUOTE="seth77, post: 4204635, member: 56653"]The German coinage of the 12th century is extremely diverse and at times hectic, as baronial and ecclesiastical mints were often more prolific, important and profitable than Royal or even Imperial ones. One of these mints, located at Regensburg, had been a Royal mint, striking coinage for the Kings of Germany between 947 and 1070, before becoming the capital and main mint of the united Duchy of Bavaria, and striking for the barons of the House of Welf and Babenberg. One of these lords was Heinrich XI von Babenberg, called by contemporaries and successors Jasomirgott, who ruled as both Duke of Bavaria and Margrave of Austria from 1141/3 to 1156. His coinage as Duke of Bavaria from Regensburg in the 1140s is struck on wide flans, usually with flat areas, and is quite scarce. This specimen is better than the average for the type: [ATTACH=full]1077995[/ATTACH] AR23x21mm, 1.06g, silver dunnpfennig, minted at Regensburg, cca. 1143-1145/50.Head facing slightly right in pearled circle; surrounded by 7 arches, each containing a head. Points and (possibly) letters outside the arches.Seated king to the right, handing a flag to right standing duke inside a pearled circle. Points and letters outside the circle (and off flan mostly).Emmerig 78, <a href="https://www.academia.edu/24323600/Medieval_Coins_of_Bavaria" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.academia.edu/24323600/Medieval_Coins_of_Bavaria" rel="nofollow">Medieval Coins of Bavaria</a>. The rule of Heinrich (Henry) is tied to the rise in importance of Vienna, where he eventually established his seat of power (in 1145), after having resided in Regensburg (as acting Duke of Bavaria) from 1141/3. Heinrich took part in the Second Crusade in 1147, joining the company of King Conrad III of Germany, which is possibly where he got the nickname Jasomirgott. The campaign of Conrad was a disaster and most of the German army was lost at Dorylaeum. After which: <ul> <li>In 1148 he was in Constantinople, waiting for Conrad to recover. </li> <li>Later that same year, Heinrich XI was with his king in Jerusalem and very likely through the failed attempts to siege Damascus and Ascalon that summer. </li> <li>In late 1148, the German host was again in Constantinople, where Heinrich married Theodora Comnena, the niece of Emperor Manuel I. </li> <li>In 1149 he was back in Vienna.</li> </ul> The nickname which appears to have been given to him during this crusading period (1147-1148) stuck with the Babenberg family at least until the 13th century, when it is mentioned in the Auctarium vindobonese in the form of "Ioch so mir Got" -- possibly a Mittelhochdeutsch expression similar to "joch sam mir Got (helfe)" or "ja, so (wahr) mir Gott (helfe)," meaning "Yes, so help me God," as part of an oath, possibly a loyalty oath to God and King during the fateful campaigns in Asia Minor and the Holy Land. In 1156, his former comrade in arms from Dorylaeum, Friedrich, now Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, raised his Austrian domains from a Margraviate to the rank of Duchy and established Heinrich as the first independent Duke of Austria, which he ruled until his death in early 1177. As far as German coinage from the 12th century goes, this type has one of the more artistic and intricately complex designs, unfortunately, as many other German issues, lacking quality control in its striking, many coins being poorly struck, double-struck or with large areas of flat striking. Despite its flat strike area, from what I have seen, this specimen is one of the better examples for the type.[/QUOTE]

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