Silver Kilo 2021 Charles IV - Founder and Builder, Coin from Niue - detailed information

Niue, a sovereign state in free association with New Zealand, uses two official legal tender currencies. The New Zealand Dollar is the circulation currency for daily transactions, while the government also authorises legal tender coins in the Niue Dollar currency for collector's purposes.

A number of mints issue a large variety of commemorative, bullion and collector coins under the authority of Niue. These coins are dedicated to historical or general popular culture themes not related to Niue itself. Many of them are in standard bullion sizes based on the troy ounce, but some are in the metric system and go to the large size of one kilogram (1 kg) of silver.

This premium bullion coin highlights Bohemian King Charles IV, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, in his role of founder and builder.

When Charles IV assumed power, the Czech lands were neglected and in ruins. "And we found the kingdom so abandoned that we did not find a single castle that was free, that was not mortgaged with all the royal goods, so that we had no place to live except in town houses, like other townspeople. And the Prague Castle was so spoiled, ruined, and destroyed that it had been reduced to the ground since the time of King Otakar", wrote in his autobiography the man who decided to address the bleak situation.

He turned Prague Castle into a representative residence, which included the magnificent St. Vitus Cathedral, the work of master builders Matthias of Arras and Petr Parléř. Petr Parléř also built a number of other buildings on behalf of Charles IV, such as the stone bridge over the Vltava River. The efforts of the king, who turned impoverished Prague into the heart of the Holy Roman Empire, also included the building of the New Town of Prague and the founding of a university - the oldest north of the Alps and east of Paris. Charles IV did not neglect the rest of the kingdom. He founded royal cities and royal castles throughout the country to strengthen the power of the monarch. Karlstejn - intended as an impregnable fortress to protect the royal insignia and holy relics from all over the empire - was given a special status. He attached no less importance to churches and monasteries, which were centres of religion as well as culture. He built vineyards and spas, and it is no wonder that he received the affectionate title of Father of the Fatherland from the Bohemians.