The kingdoms, duchies and free cities of Germany agreed to mint the vereinstaler at the conference of Vienna in 1857. The idea was to simplify trade between the two large German currency districts, the area of the taler currency in the north and the area of the gulden currency in the south, by a uniform monetary system. The common coin of the union – the vereinstaler – was the be a large silver coin modeled after the taler of Prussia. The conference of Vienna laid the groundwork for the monetary reform of the German Empire in 1871. However, when the mark currency was introduced in Germany that year, the vereinstaler remained legal tender. It was in circulation until the 1st of October 1907 as piece of 3 marks.