Description

Charles II. 1660-1685. Silver Medal n. d. (1677), 28.98 g. Marriage of Mary to William III of Orange. Unsigned, by N. Chevalier. Bust, armoured and draped. GVILH . III . D. G . PRIN . AVR . HOL . ET . WES . GV. Rv. Bust, hair braided with pearls and draped. MARIA . D . G . AVR . PRIN . NAT . DE . IORC. Plain edge. 41.8 mm. Eimer 256. MI i 568/235. van Loon III, 222,1. Saunders/Vanhoudt 1677-33. Vorzüglich / Extremely Fine. Feine Patina und kleine Randfehler / Nicely toned and minor edge flaws.

From the auction Künker 35, Osnabrück, March 1997, lot 5397.

During the war with France in 1677, William III of Orange tried to improve his position by marrying his first cousin Mary, elder surviving daughter of the Duke of York, later King James II of England (James VII of Scotland). Mary was eleven years his junior, but William believed that marrying Mary would increase his chances of succeeding to Charles's kingdoms and that it would draw England's monarch away from his pro-French policies.

Mary was fifteen when she became betrothed to her cousin. When James told Mary that she was to marry her cousin, she reportedly "wept all that afternoon and all the following day".