Lot Essay
The initial E embroidered above the date 1828 stands for Ernst I. Herzog von Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha 1784-1844. The two duchies of Saxe-Coburg and Saxe-Gotha were both among the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine branch of the Wettin dynasty. The Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha originated as the personal union of these two in 1826, following the death of the last Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg without male heirs. His Wettin relations repartitioned his lands, and his son-in-law Duke Ernst I of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld received Gotha, and changed his title to Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, although the two duchies remained technically separate.