Barony of Schonau 4 heller 1755.
The Barony of Schonau was a tiny German state near Aachen, in what would be far western Germany today.
Back in the days of the Holy Roman Empire, a nobleman or city had to be formally granted the right to issue coins by the Emperor, a right normally granted to those who had done some service to the empire. And people with such a lowly rank as Baron were rarely granted this privelege.
In 1755, Baron Johann Gottfried got it into his head that he didn't need any silly old Emperor's permission to issue coins. All his neighbours were issuing coins, so he thought he'd join in the fun.
His neighbours, however, were incensed at this tiny upstart state issuing coins of its own without the permission they'd all worked hard to obtain, so they got together to put a stop to it. Their solution: invade Schonau, dethrone the Baron, annex the Barony and shut down the mint. The copper 4 heller was the only coin ever issued by this ephemeral state.
