{"product_id":"r341","title":"Austria 1800 S Francis II 1 Kreuzer Extra Fine (EF40) toned","description":"Austria 1800 S Francis II 1 Kreuzer Extra Fine (EF40) toned\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFrancis (or Franz) II was the last Holy Roman Emperor, and, subsequently, the first Emperor of Austria. He succeeded his father in 1792, and his reign was really defined by one thing: losing wars with France. France was embroiled in the Revolution, and this had put every monarch in Europe on edge. Some were nervous, wanting to contain the Revolution like a plague that could seep into their own populace. Others were itching to take advantage of the chaos. Francis, who shared a border with them, seemed to have one foot in each camp. His army was part of a coalition that sought to swoop in and seize Paris, but was promptly defeated at the Battle of Valmy. They lost again at Fleurus. Then, Francis' armies started getting absolutely thrashed by a hitherto unknown general named Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon would be the ultimate undoing of the Holy Roman Empire, and Francis was forced to scramble to consolidate Habsburg holdings before they all ended up as French vassals. This eventually led him to establish an entirely new dynasty, in which he crowned himself the first Emperor of Austria.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis 1800 kreuzer sits right in the middle of the chaos that was the Revolutionary Wars and the rise of Napoleon. In 1800, Francis' forces were being forcibly evicted from the Italian Peninsula by Napoleon, who had won the Battle of Marengo in June. The French would then chase the Austrians up into Bavaria, where they would deliver another crushing blow at the Battle of Hohenlinden in December. The \"S\" mintmark found under Francis' bust identifies the coin as having come from Smolnik, in modern Slovakia.","brand":"Colonial Acres Coins","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53373588472097,"sku":"Sept.DOD-R341","price":34.95,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0679\/1744\/7457\/files\/R341.jpg?v=1787754158","url":"https:\/\/www.colonialacres.com\/products\/r341","provider":"Colonial Acres Coins","version":"1.0","type":"link"}