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The Huguenot-Walloon half dollar or Huguenot-Walloon Tercentenary half dollar is a commemorative coin issued by the United States Bureau of the Mint in 1924. It marks the 300th anniversary of the voyage of the ''Nieuw Nederlandt'' (1624). Many of the passengers were Huguenots who had lived in what is now Belgium; they became early settlers of New York State and the surrounding area. A commission run by the Federal Council of Churches in America sought issuance of a half dollar to mark the anniversary, and the bill passed through Congress without opposition in 1923 and was signed by President Warren G. Harding. Sketches were prepared by commission chairman Rev. John Baer Stoudt and converted to plaster models by the Mint's aging chief engraver, George T. Morgan. The models were initially rejected by the Commission of Fine Arts, which required revisions under the supervision of Buffalo nickel designer James Earle Fraser. Of the 300,000 coins authorized by Congress, fewer than half were actually struck, and of these, a portion was returned to the Mint and released into circulation. The coin excited some controversy because of its sponsorship by a religious group. The choice of William the Silent and Gaspard de Coligny to appear on the obverse was also questioned as the men are considered martyrs by the Huguenots and died decades before the voyage of the ''Nieuw Nederlandt''. The coins are currently valued in the hundreds of dollars, depending on condition. == Background == The Huguenots were French Protestants, and there was often conflict with the Catholic majority. Many Huguenots fled France in the 16th and 17th centuries, when there was intense persecution of them, most notably in the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre of 1572. Among those who fell in the rioting that day was the Huguenot military and political leader, Admiral Gaspard de Coligny. Many Huguenots who fled France settled in what is today Belgium and have become known as Walloons. Others came to live in the Netherlands. William the Silent, the Prince of Orange was one of the leaders of the Dutch War of Independence against Spain. He was assassinated in 1584 by Balthasar Gérard, a pro-Spanish extremist. Some Huguenots went elsewhere: on March 29, 1624, the ship ''Nieuw Nederlandt'' set out for New Netherland, the Dutch possessions centered on what is now the state of New York; more ships followed. These were many of the early settlers of the area. In 1626, Peter Minuit, the Director General for the Dutch West India Company, famously purchased the island of Manhattan from the Native Americans for goods worth some 60 guilders, often rendered as $24. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Huguenot-Walloon half dollar」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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