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The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: The Life and Times of Jacob Fugger
In the days when Columbus sailed the ocean and Da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa, a German banker named Jacob Fugger became the richest man in history.
Fugger lived in Germany at the turn of the sixteenth century, the grandson of a peasant. By the time he died, his fortune amounted to nearly two percent of European GDP. In an era when kings had unlimited power, Fugger dared to stare down heads of state and ask them to pay back their loans—with interest. It was this coolness and self-assurance, along with his inexhaustible ambition, that made him not only the richest man ever, but a force of history as well. Before Fugger came along it was illegal under church law to charge interest on loans, but he got the Pope to change that. He also helped trigger the Reformation and likely funded Magellan’s circumnavigation of the globe. His creation of a news service gave him an information edge over his rivals and customers and earned Fugger a footnote in the history of journalism. And he took Austria’s Habsburg family from being second-tier sovereigns to rulers of the first empire where the sun never set.
Fugger lived in Germany at the turn of the sixteenth century, the grandson of a peasant. By the time he died, his fortune amounted to nearly two percent of European GDP. In an era when kings had unlimited power, Fugger dared to stare down heads of state and ask them to pay back their loans—with interest. It was this coolness and self-assurance, along with his inexhaustible ambition, that made him not only the richest man ever, but a force of history as well. Before Fugger came along it was illegal under church law to charge interest on loans, but he got the Pope to change that. He also helped trigger the Reformation and likely funded Magellan’s circumnavigation of the globe. His creation of a news service gave him an information edge over his rivals and customers and earned Fugger a footnote in the history of journalism. And he took Austria’s Habsburg family from being second-tier sovereigns to rulers of the first empire where the sun never set.
305 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 4, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 184 reviews
May 18, 2024
That was a surprisingly interesting read for me since I do not pick up biographies/authobiographies of the rich to find out how they did it. I have come across the Fugger family while reading novels, and having found this biography, I decided to give it a go. And no regrets! Mr Steinmetz did a great job, presenting the ways Jacob Fugger operated, explaining them against the general background. He was a man of ingenious ideas, principles regarding finances, and charitable. Augsburg is definitely on my to-visit list now. Engaging book!
August 18, 2021
V tejto knihe som sa o.i dočítala, že Karol Smelý, burgundský arcivojvoda a ašpirant na kráľovský titul, si na svoju veľkolepú inváziu do Švajčiarska v roku 1477 vzal citujem: strieborný tanier, zlaté karafy, ozdobné predmety zo slonoviny, meče vykladané drahokamami, tróny s vysokými operadlami, kosti svätých, postele s baldachýnmi, zdobené pštrosie vajcia, ako aj svoju zbierku topánok vrátane tých najštýlovejších s neuveriteľne dlhými špičkami...
...a neviem ako vy, ale ja si jeho rozhovor so zbrojnošom v predvečer odchodu predstavujem asi takto:
"Co to děláš?"
"Dělám to, cos mi řekl, abych udělal."
"Řekl jsem ti: ,Přines si pár nezbytnejch věcí, bez kterejch se neobejdeš.'"
"Přesně," souhlasil Kocourarol, "a tohle je všechno, co si s sebou beru.
Jen tohle a deset dalšíchstojanů baldachýnových postelí. Cestuj nalehko, pohybuj se rychle. Vaúúúúú." Točil se na místě.
"Tohle všechno nemůžešdo vakuovýho skladiště nacpat predsa terigať cez pol Európy - to by trvalo věky Nepriateľ by rozprášil naše vojsko a neprestal by, kým by tvoja garderóba nebola na cimpr-campr!!!!!"
Kocourarol protáhl obličej. Poslední dvě hodiny strávil tím, že se pokusil zúžit svoji obrovskou kolekci na sto nejoblíbenějších obleků. Byl na sebe tak tvrdý. Žlutý smoking se zeleným lemem byl v tahu. Imitace mroží kůže s límcem z umělé zebry byl historií! A co teprve jeho červený dopolední oblek z PVC, s ladícím cylindrem a hůlkou: vyhozený!
"Smíš si vzít dva obleky" řeklLister zbrojnoš, "to je všechno."
"Dva obleky?"
"Dva? Pak zůstávám, kámo."
"Nemůžeš tady zůstat.Až vyjdu ven, budeš mrtvěj." Bola by to politická samovražda.
"Dva obleky, to znamená bejt mrtvěj."
"Vyber si."
Kocourarol obešel stojany, načež je obešel znovu. Potom se otočil a obešel je z druhé strany: "Kolik obleků jsi to říkal? Deset?"
"Dva."
"No, člověče." Kocourarol znovu obešel všechny stojany..."
Lister Zbrojnoš přistoupil ke stojanům, popadl dva obleky a hodil je bez ladu a skladu do vakuového loďáku kočiara: "Fajn, bereš si tyhle dva."
...
"Hej," zvolal Kocourarol, "kdybych si uřízl nohu a nechal ji tady, mohl bych si vzít tři?"
...už len dodám, že čo sa týka Karola, Švajčiari prekvapili jeho vojsko neďaleko Ženevského jazera a počas bitky pri Morate ho z tábora vyhnali skôr, než všetky tieto veci dokázal zachrániť.
https://kultura.sme.sk/c/22722827/dlh...
...a neviem ako vy, ale ja si jeho rozhovor so zbrojnošom v predvečer odchodu predstavujem asi takto:
"Co to děláš?"
"Dělám to, cos mi řekl, abych udělal."
"Řekl jsem ti: ,Přines si pár nezbytnejch věcí, bez kterejch se neobejdeš.'"
"Přesně," souhlasil K
Jen tohle a deset dalších
"Tohle všechno nemůžeš
K
"Smíš si vzít dva obleky" řekl
"Dva obleky?"
"Dva? Pak zůstávám, kámo."
"Nemůžeš tady zůstat.
"Dva obleky, to znamená bejt mrtvěj."
"Vyber si."
K
"Dva."
"No, člověče." K
...
"Hej," zvolal K
...už len dodám, že čo sa týka Karola, Švajčiari prekvapili jeho vojsko neďaleko Ženevského jazera a počas bitky pri Morate ho z tábora vyhnali skôr, než všetky tieto veci dokázal zachrániť.
https://kultura.sme.sk/c/22722827/dlh...
March 16, 2016
“The Richest Man In The World” is pop history, designed to appeal to modern readers by putting a modern gloss on a medieval man. As to its central figure, the German banker Jacob Fugger, it may get the core of his story right. Or it may not, because in much of its ancillary history, it is grossly inaccurate—to the degree it makes the reader uncertain what in the core story is actually accurate.
The core of the story is that Fugger was both one of the first semi-modern bankers and also a key player in much of the political activity of the early Renaissance, in particular in the Holy Roman Empire, in particular Germany. Fugger played a key role in the career of the Hapsburg Maximilian I, in both his election as Holy Roman Emperor and in enabling him to conduct various wars. Fugger played a similar role for Maximilian’s grandson, the very famous and fabulously powerful Charles V.
Fugger was not so much original as lucky and disciplined—he was the Warren Buffett of his time, having no special talent that many others did not also have, but starting with significant wealth and connections given to him by his forefathers, he parlayed that into massive wealth by a consistent application of core business principles. And as with Warren Buffet, outsiders ascribed genius to what was actually a combination of good luck and good management.
That’s not to say Fugger’s story isn’t interesting. It is very interesting. For one, seeing history through the activities of someone outside the usual aristocratic oligarchy is inherently interesting. Moreover, Steinmetz writes well, and narrates the story with reasonable vigor. So it’s an enjoyable read.
But let’s get on to the inaccuracies and errors. My criticisms are not mere pedantry. There are probably many more errors in the book than those I list—I know little about Fugger or the Holy Roman Empire of the period, so I suspect there are many other howlers that I just missed. My interests lie in Hungarian history and Roman Catholic theology, so the errors I detect mostly relate to those areas. In no particular order:
1) Steinmetz repeatedly refers to the Western European social framework of the time (late Fifteenth and early Sixteenth Centuries) as a “caste system.” He says, for example, that “Fugger began his career as a commoner, the lowest rung in the European caste system. If he failed to bow before a baron or clear the a knight on a busy street, he risked getting skewered with a sword.” None of this is true.
The European system lacked all characteristics of a true caste system (i.e., India’s), not that Steinmetz identifies any supposed caste other than “noble” and “commoner.” A true caste system does not have “rungs,” which implies movement among classes, and anyway “commoner” as such wasn’t a rung in Europe. While Europe did have a class structure, European medieval classes were quite fluid (extremely fluid at times); they were not divided into rigid sub-classes; marriage was not endogamous. Moreover, different areas of “Europe” differed wildly in their class system—for example, in the death of serfdom West of the Elbe, and its resurgence east of the Elbe. Steinmetz himself notes that Augsburg, Fugger’s home city, was a “free city” that administered its own justice and was subject only to the “remote and distant emperor.” Finally, nobles could not randomly skewer commoners. This was not feudal Japan. The rule of law emerged early in Europe, and while doubtless injustice was frequent, citizens on the street, whatever their rank, could not be randomly murdered without severe punishment, especially in a free city. Steinmetz seems unaware of all of this.
2) Steinmetz shows a total lack of understanding of much of Roman Catholic medieval theology. Early on, he telegraphs his ignorance with the astonishing statement: “There were two types of clerics. There were conservatives, who blindly followed Rome, and reformers like Erasmus of Rotterdam, the greatest intellectual of the age.” Apparently there was nobody in between.
Steinmetz spends quite a bit of time on Fugger’s role in the structuring and collection of indulgences, a key focus of Martin Luther’s reforms. But Steinmetz totally fails to understand what indulgences are. He claims that they “were called indulgences because Rome used them to indulge wickedness.” This is apparently not a joke. (The name really comes from the Latin indulgentia, from indulgeo, “to be kind or tender”.) Beyond nomenclature, though, Steinmetz doesn’t seem to understand the difference in Roman Catholic theology between hell and purgatory. It is not true that, by selling indulgences, “The pope could take the meanest sinner and, with a blessing, secure him a place in heaven and save him from purgatory.” In Roman Catholic theology, attaining heaven requires repentance and absolution, and indulgences have no effect on either of those. Instead, indulgences are supposed to reduce “the temporal punishment due to sin,” i.e., time in purgatory, which is a “waiting pen” prior to heaven—but everyone in purgatory is already guaranteed to attain heaven. All this was very clear to medieval people, as any study of the Crusades, for example, will show. Steinmetz compounds this lack of understanding by bizarrely claiming that “Kill a baby? Deflower the Virgin Mary? Indulgences absolved them all.” No, indulgences absolved nothing, and certainly not sins such as killing a baby, which would require absolution from a bishop, not a mere priest, after confession (as abortion always has in the Roman church).
3) Steinmetz repeats the old legend that Europeans consumed spices used to “mask the taste of rotten meat.” This has been repeatedly debunked, and makes no sense anyway—if you were rich enough to afford spices, you were certainly rich enough to not to eat rotten meat.
4) The book badly needs an editor who’s not drunk or a Millennial. Vocabulary errors litter the book. It’s “wring [money] out of the citizenry,” not “ring out.” It’s “illiquid,” not “ill-liquid.” Discussing Fugger’s bequests, on page 233 Fugger left specific amounts of “millions” of florins; on page 237 those amounts are now “billions.” Also, “1427” is incorrectly used for “1527” in the same discussion. Plus other minor factual errors—for example, medieval coins were not cast; they were die-struck.
5) Dracula was not a “Transylvanian count.” He had nothing to do with Transylvania; that’s an invention of Bram Stoker in the 20th Century, for his fictional character. Vlad III, known as Dracula, was voivode (i.e., ruler) of Wallachia, an independent principality now part of Romania and never part of Transylvania. And he was not a count. He did not impale Turks in Hungary, as Steinmetz claims, because he was not Hungarian.
And, conversely, the peasant rebellion leader György Dózsa WAS Hungarian, not Romanian, as Steinmetz claims. He was a Székely, a Hungarian from Transylvania.
6) One of Fugger’s longest-lasting and most profitable investments was in Hungarian copper mines, beginning in 1494. Steinmetz claims “Other German merchants thought Fugger a fool when he bought his first Hungarian copper mine . . . . For them, Hungary was too savage and unpredictable for investment.” This is entirely false. At the time, Hungary was the largest kingdom in Europe, a cultivated ancillary center of the Renaissance and wholly integrated as a key member of the kingdoms of Europe, and probably less savage and unpredictable than Germany, with its patchwork of principalities. Steinmetz seems to have no grasp of overall European history.
7) Erasmus did not have syphilis, despite Steinmetz repeatedly claiming he did. A second’s worth of research shows this definitively. Nor did was Cortes personally the first person to bring syphilis back from the New World—Cortes first went to the New World, as a very-not-important person, in 1504, and syphilis appeared in Europe in 1494.
8) Under customary law, prior to the re-creation of Roman law, it was not true of the manor system that “Everything belonged to everyone.” Customary law was very complex, of course, and involved various informal property arrangements, along with strict rules against alienation. But it was hardly generally communal property, other than specific pieces of property used in common (hence, the “commons”).
9) Steinmetz claims “The Janissaries were children of Christian slaves, raised as soldiers.” Actually, they were (kidnapped) children of Christian free peasants, made (military) slaves and forcibly converted to Islam.
So, while “The Richest Man Who Ever Lived” tells a quite interesting story, it’s impossible to rely on anything it says. Steinmetz appears to be an auto-didact who relied too much on “auto.” He seems to have read widely, with, as he says, the help of a translation app, but perhaps not widely enough, and he desperately needed a skilled and knowledgeable editor. Ultimately, that makes his book barely worth reading.
The core of the story is that Fugger was both one of the first semi-modern bankers and also a key player in much of the political activity of the early Renaissance, in particular in the Holy Roman Empire, in particular Germany. Fugger played a key role in the career of the Hapsburg Maximilian I, in both his election as Holy Roman Emperor and in enabling him to conduct various wars. Fugger played a similar role for Maximilian’s grandson, the very famous and fabulously powerful Charles V.
Fugger was not so much original as lucky and disciplined—he was the Warren Buffett of his time, having no special talent that many others did not also have, but starting with significant wealth and connections given to him by his forefathers, he parlayed that into massive wealth by a consistent application of core business principles. And as with Warren Buffet, outsiders ascribed genius to what was actually a combination of good luck and good management.
That’s not to say Fugger’s story isn’t interesting. It is very interesting. For one, seeing history through the activities of someone outside the usual aristocratic oligarchy is inherently interesting. Moreover, Steinmetz writes well, and narrates the story with reasonable vigor. So it’s an enjoyable read.
But let’s get on to the inaccuracies and errors. My criticisms are not mere pedantry. There are probably many more errors in the book than those I list—I know little about Fugger or the Holy Roman Empire of the period, so I suspect there are many other howlers that I just missed. My interests lie in Hungarian history and Roman Catholic theology, so the errors I detect mostly relate to those areas. In no particular order:
1) Steinmetz repeatedly refers to the Western European social framework of the time (late Fifteenth and early Sixteenth Centuries) as a “caste system.” He says, for example, that “Fugger began his career as a commoner, the lowest rung in the European caste system. If he failed to bow before a baron or clear the a knight on a busy street, he risked getting skewered with a sword.” None of this is true.
The European system lacked all characteristics of a true caste system (i.e., India’s), not that Steinmetz identifies any supposed caste other than “noble” and “commoner.” A true caste system does not have “rungs,” which implies movement among classes, and anyway “commoner” as such wasn’t a rung in Europe. While Europe did have a class structure, European medieval classes were quite fluid (extremely fluid at times); they were not divided into rigid sub-classes; marriage was not endogamous. Moreover, different areas of “Europe” differed wildly in their class system—for example, in the death of serfdom West of the Elbe, and its resurgence east of the Elbe. Steinmetz himself notes that Augsburg, Fugger’s home city, was a “free city” that administered its own justice and was subject only to the “remote and distant emperor.” Finally, nobles could not randomly skewer commoners. This was not feudal Japan. The rule of law emerged early in Europe, and while doubtless injustice was frequent, citizens on the street, whatever their rank, could not be randomly murdered without severe punishment, especially in a free city. Steinmetz seems unaware of all of this.
2) Steinmetz shows a total lack of understanding of much of Roman Catholic medieval theology. Early on, he telegraphs his ignorance with the astonishing statement: “There were two types of clerics. There were conservatives, who blindly followed Rome, and reformers like Erasmus of Rotterdam, the greatest intellectual of the age.” Apparently there was nobody in between.
Steinmetz spends quite a bit of time on Fugger’s role in the structuring and collection of indulgences, a key focus of Martin Luther’s reforms. But Steinmetz totally fails to understand what indulgences are. He claims that they “were called indulgences because Rome used them to indulge wickedness.” This is apparently not a joke. (The name really comes from the Latin indulgentia, from indulgeo, “to be kind or tender”.) Beyond nomenclature, though, Steinmetz doesn’t seem to understand the difference in Roman Catholic theology between hell and purgatory. It is not true that, by selling indulgences, “The pope could take the meanest sinner and, with a blessing, secure him a place in heaven and save him from purgatory.” In Roman Catholic theology, attaining heaven requires repentance and absolution, and indulgences have no effect on either of those. Instead, indulgences are supposed to reduce “the temporal punishment due to sin,” i.e., time in purgatory, which is a “waiting pen” prior to heaven—but everyone in purgatory is already guaranteed to attain heaven. All this was very clear to medieval people, as any study of the Crusades, for example, will show. Steinmetz compounds this lack of understanding by bizarrely claiming that “Kill a baby? Deflower the Virgin Mary? Indulgences absolved them all.” No, indulgences absolved nothing, and certainly not sins such as killing a baby, which would require absolution from a bishop, not a mere priest, after confession (as abortion always has in the Roman church).
3) Steinmetz repeats the old legend that Europeans consumed spices used to “mask the taste of rotten meat.” This has been repeatedly debunked, and makes no sense anyway—if you were rich enough to afford spices, you were certainly rich enough to not to eat rotten meat.
4) The book badly needs an editor who’s not drunk or a Millennial. Vocabulary errors litter the book. It’s “wring [money] out of the citizenry,” not “ring out.” It’s “illiquid,” not “ill-liquid.” Discussing Fugger’s bequests, on page 233 Fugger left specific amounts of “millions” of florins; on page 237 those amounts are now “billions.” Also, “1427” is incorrectly used for “1527” in the same discussion. Plus other minor factual errors—for example, medieval coins were not cast; they were die-struck.
5) Dracula was not a “Transylvanian count.” He had nothing to do with Transylvania; that’s an invention of Bram Stoker in the 20th Century, for his fictional character. Vlad III, known as Dracula, was voivode (i.e., ruler) of Wallachia, an independent principality now part of Romania and never part of Transylvania. And he was not a count. He did not impale Turks in Hungary, as Steinmetz claims, because he was not Hungarian.
And, conversely, the peasant rebellion leader György Dózsa WAS Hungarian, not Romanian, as Steinmetz claims. He was a Székely, a Hungarian from Transylvania.
6) One of Fugger’s longest-lasting and most profitable investments was in Hungarian copper mines, beginning in 1494. Steinmetz claims “Other German merchants thought Fugger a fool when he bought his first Hungarian copper mine . . . . For them, Hungary was too savage and unpredictable for investment.” This is entirely false. At the time, Hungary was the largest kingdom in Europe, a cultivated ancillary center of the Renaissance and wholly integrated as a key member of the kingdoms of Europe, and probably less savage and unpredictable than Germany, with its patchwork of principalities. Steinmetz seems to have no grasp of overall European history.
7) Erasmus did not have syphilis, despite Steinmetz repeatedly claiming he did. A second’s worth of research shows this definitively. Nor did was Cortes personally the first person to bring syphilis back from the New World—Cortes first went to the New World, as a very-not-important person, in 1504, and syphilis appeared in Europe in 1494.
8) Under customary law, prior to the re-creation of Roman law, it was not true of the manor system that “Everything belonged to everyone.” Customary law was very complex, of course, and involved various informal property arrangements, along with strict rules against alienation. But it was hardly generally communal property, other than specific pieces of property used in common (hence, the “commons”).
9) Steinmetz claims “The Janissaries were children of Christian slaves, raised as soldiers.” Actually, they were (kidnapped) children of Christian free peasants, made (military) slaves and forcibly converted to Islam.
So, while “The Richest Man Who Ever Lived” tells a quite interesting story, it’s impossible to rely on anything it says. Steinmetz appears to be an auto-didact who relied too much on “auto.” He seems to have read widely, with, as he says, the help of a translation app, but perhaps not widely enough, and he desperately needed a skilled and knowledgeable editor. Ultimately, that makes his book barely worth reading.
December 22, 2015
This book is a biography of Jacob Fugger, a rich German banker/business man, who lived from 1459-1525. The title's reference to the "richest man ... ever" is justified by his net worth at the time of his death that equaled two percent of the total gross domestic product (GDP) of all the European countries at that time. (i.e. relative wealth)
Jacob Fugger came from an already wealthy family involved in the cloth trade. In 1487 his older brothers were wealthy enough to make their first loan to Archduke Sigismund and took as security an interest in silver and copper mines in the Tirol. They sent their younger brother Jacob to the area to see what could be done with the mines. He successfully increased the efficiency of mining operations and later expanded operations to copper mines in Upper Hungaria (modern Slovakia).
Copper happened to be a product that European traders could use on voyages to India as trade for pepper and other spices. Thus it was very much in demand and made the Fugger company extremely wealthy. After the older brothers died Jacob Fugger controlled the company in partnership with his nephews.
Jacob Fugger then leveraged his mining wealth by investing in banking operations across Europe and making loans secured by additional land rents and mines. Popes, kings and businesses across Europe used his banking branches to transfer wealth across the Alps without the need to actually cart money by wagon caravan.
This man, seldom mentioned by history books, dramatically influenced politics during his era by doing such things as financing (i.e. bribing as required) the rise of Maximilian I and securing the election of the Spanish king Charles V to become Holy Roman Emperor. Jacob Fugger also funded the marriages which later resulted in House of Habsburg gaining the kingdoms of Bohemia and Hungary.
But more significantly for us today, Jacob Fugger continues to influence our lives by making the practice of paying/charging interest on borrowed money an acceptable business practice. The following link to an except from the book explains more fully how the ancient prohibition of "usury" was finally overcome.
Link to book excerpt posted on DelanceyPlace.com:
http://delanceyplace.com/view-archive...
Years later during the Counter Reformation, the Jesuits tried to bring back the prohibition of charging interest, but another Papal ruling legalized it probably because south German rulers would have switched to the Protestant side otherwise.
Jacob Fugger lived to see the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation, the Knights Revolt and German Peasants War. His business affairs were intertwined with the established Catholic rulers so the Fugger money was used for funding the forces that resisted the rebellions and fight off the northern German states that had gone Protestant. This books suggests that if it weren't for Fugger funding probably all of the German states would have ended up as Protestant.
Fugger's banking system may have contributed unwittingly to the reasons for the Protestant Reformation by making it easy to send funds raised by selling indulgences from northern Germany to the Vatican.
Fugger is credited with being the first business north of the Alps to use double entry book keeping. The following quotation from the book caught my eye. It glorifies the virtues of the balance sheet as the measure of a life, the life of Jacob Fugger in this case.
Jacob Fugger came from an already wealthy family involved in the cloth trade. In 1487 his older brothers were wealthy enough to make their first loan to Archduke Sigismund and took as security an interest in silver and copper mines in the Tirol. They sent their younger brother Jacob to the area to see what could be done with the mines. He successfully increased the efficiency of mining operations and later expanded operations to copper mines in Upper Hungaria (modern Slovakia).
Copper happened to be a product that European traders could use on voyages to India as trade for pepper and other spices. Thus it was very much in demand and made the Fugger company extremely wealthy. After the older brothers died Jacob Fugger controlled the company in partnership with his nephews.
Jacob Fugger then leveraged his mining wealth by investing in banking operations across Europe and making loans secured by additional land rents and mines. Popes, kings and businesses across Europe used his banking branches to transfer wealth across the Alps without the need to actually cart money by wagon caravan.
This man, seldom mentioned by history books, dramatically influenced politics during his era by doing such things as financing (i.e. bribing as required) the rise of Maximilian I and securing the election of the Spanish king Charles V to become Holy Roman Emperor. Jacob Fugger also funded the marriages which later resulted in House of Habsburg gaining the kingdoms of Bohemia and Hungary.
But more significantly for us today, Jacob Fugger continues to influence our lives by making the practice of paying/charging interest on borrowed money an acceptable business practice. The following link to an except from the book explains more fully how the ancient prohibition of "usury" was finally overcome.
Link to book excerpt posted on DelanceyPlace.com:
http://delanceyplace.com/view-archive...
Years later during the Counter Reformation, the Jesuits tried to bring back the prohibition of charging interest, but another Papal ruling legalized it probably because south German rulers would have switched to the Protestant side otherwise.
Jacob Fugger lived to see the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation, the Knights Revolt and German Peasants War. His business affairs were intertwined with the established Catholic rulers so the Fugger money was used for funding the forces that resisted the rebellions and fight off the northern German states that had gone Protestant. This books suggests that if it weren't for Fugger funding probably all of the German states would have ended up as Protestant.
Fugger's banking system may have contributed unwittingly to the reasons for the Protestant Reformation by making it easy to send funds raised by selling indulgences from northern Germany to the Vatican.
Fugger is credited with being the first business north of the Alps to use double entry book keeping. The following quotation from the book caught my eye. It glorifies the virtues of the balance sheet as the measure of a life, the life of Jacob Fugger in this case.
If someone asked Fugger to name his greatest achievement, he might cite the imperial election or the Fuggerei. Or he could cite the balance sheet of the firm Jacob Fugger & Nephews. It is a summary of a career that, although reduced to numbers, tells a story about kings and queens; popes and loved ones; overseas adventures and shifting fortunes; resource plays and enough real estate to merit the attention of mapmakers. It is the story of his life.Because he had no direct descendants, the company and its assets upon Jacob's death were bequeathed to his nephew Raymund and later passed on to another nephew Anton Fugger. The company continued for another hundred years until the Fugger descendants decided they would rather live comfortable lives as landed gentry rather than deal with the burden of business responsibilities.
August 21, 2021
Toto sa číta trochu ako Jára Cimrman, lebo o hocijakej európskej udalosti v 15. alebo 16. storočí ste sa učili, tu sa dozviete, že v skutočnosti za ňou bol Jakob Fugger. Napríklad taká reformácia, všetci vieme, že Martina Luthera naštvali odpustky, tu sa dozviete, že odpustky boli špecifická vec pre Nemecko vymyslená pápežom, pretože potreboval vrátiť Fuggerovi peniaze, tak to zakryl vyberaním odpustkov akože na stavbu chrámu. Zábavné a fascinujúce.
August 12, 2015
Sober, unexceptional, biography of what is believed to be the world's first "millionaire"--i.e., wealth reckoned in seven digits during his lifetime (and on his death). Fugger (rhymes with Cougar) had stones, big ones, but also (after training in Venice) was the first banking house north of the Alps to employ double-entry booking, and invented consolidated accounts.
He used his stones to acquire actual stones: silver, diamonds, mercury mines, etc. Cleverly, he leased them from the local sovereign, who could have executed Fugger rather than repay. But Fuggar always was careful to lend each sovereign only enough to ensure (next time the need to raise mercenaries) Fugger alive was worth more than Fugger dead. Fugger himself financed the Habsburgs from minor landholders to the most important family in Europe.
Interesting, but far too short a chapter, on how Fugger sank the Hanseatic League. I've been looking for a history of those trading cities for years; this book comes closest to explaining how they could be persuaded to commit suicide in the face of Fugger's commercial empire.
Fugger's beautiful house, with 400 years of accumulated treasures, was obliterated in the War II bombing of Augsburg. No tears, but who knows what diamonds were turned into a different form of carbon?
He used his stones to acquire actual stones: silver, diamonds, mercury mines, etc. Cleverly, he leased them from the local sovereign, who could have executed Fugger rather than repay. But Fuggar always was careful to lend each sovereign only enough to ensure (next time the need to raise mercenaries) Fugger alive was worth more than Fugger dead. Fugger himself financed the Habsburgs from minor landholders to the most important family in Europe.
Interesting, but far too short a chapter, on how Fugger sank the Hanseatic League. I've been looking for a history of those trading cities for years; this book comes closest to explaining how they could be persuaded to commit suicide in the face of Fugger's commercial empire.
Fugger's beautiful house, with 400 years of accumulated treasures, was obliterated in the War II bombing of Augsburg. No tears, but who knows what diamonds were turned into a different form of carbon?
March 28, 2022
Ako fanúšik novoveku, ktorý má tendenciu stredovek skôr prehliadať, nadšene odporúčam toto pútavé a zaujímavé dielo o - európskych pomeroch v neskorom stredoveku! O počiatkoch bankovníctva a rozmachu podnikania, o vzostupe Habsburgovcov, o reformácii či nesmiernej korupcii duchovnej i svetskej. Časy dávne a búrlivé, a predsa v mnohom tak podobné tým našim. A kto vydrží, dočká sa aj Banskej Bystrice :)
March 23, 2025
Exactly the sort of book about the most wealthy banker in history that you would expect a "securities analyst for a money management firm" to write.
January 3, 2022
okej, dala som to za polku a viac už nechcem. v prvom rade musím podotknúť, že som už od začiatku nemala chuť najbohatšieho muža čítať, lebo najbohatších mužov nemám rada. čo sa týka obsahu, text ma nudil a zahlcoval menami ľudí, miest, peňazí, ktoré prispievali k celkovému nepríjemnému zážitku z čítania. neberte mi to za zlé - snažím sa rozširovať si obzory, nečítať len veci z bubliny, v ktorú ja verím. aj tak to však vždy skončí znechutením a neporozumením. nemám proste kapacitu obdivovať šikovnosť úžerníkov.
January 31, 2016
Kniha o človeku, po ktorom sa aj u nás volá veľa ulíc a všeličoho. Okrem jeho osobnej biznis story, ktorá je, ako sa vraví, špektakulárna, je to celkom dobý prehľad toho, čo sa dialo v západnej Európe pred bitkou pri Moháči. Pre nás, ktorí sme zvyknutí na dejepis v zmysle "kto všetko sa na nás kedy vykašľal a zradil nás", je to celkom obohacujúce, pretože ani v západnej Európe sa vtedy ozaj nenudili a zachraňovenie Ľudovíta pred Sulejmanom bolo z rôznych dôvodov nie úplne najaktuálnejšie. A napokon, samozrejme, triedny boj, bohatí všetko vlastnia a chudobní nič a keď to takto pôjde ďalej, skončí svet. Riešilo sa to aj v roku 1525 a ten svet stále neskončil.
Read
November 26, 2016This is a terrible book.
I wasn't expecting a defence of usury, but really, Steinmetz thinks that Fugger's greatest achievement is making usury acceptable. He thinks that most of the other things Fugger did have been buried in time, which is bizarre to me. Fugger enabled the Austro-Hungarian Empire, may have financed Magellan, and kept South Germany Catholic. But the Austro-Hungarian Empire isn't there any more and Steinmetz is a financial journalist... well.
Good things about this book: it's interesting seeing the Reformation, in Germany, from this angle. I wanted to contrast Fugger with the Medici, and now I can. I wanted more information about the emperor Maximilian, and I got it. And I guess it's interesting to know that there are people walking around and breathing who think usury is a good thing and 1500 was a long time ago. Though if you want an interesting consideration of why usury was considered a sin and now isn't, Parks Medici Money is way better.
Highly not recommended. Sorry.
I wasn't expecting a defence of usury, but really, Steinmetz thinks that Fugger's greatest achievement is making usury acceptable. He thinks that most of the other things Fugger did have been buried in time, which is bizarre to me. Fugger enabled the Austro-Hungarian Empire, may have financed Magellan, and kept South Germany Catholic. But the Austro-Hungarian Empire isn't there any more and Steinmetz is a financial journalist... well.
Good things about this book: it's interesting seeing the Reformation, in Germany, from this angle. I wanted to contrast Fugger with the Medici, and now I can. I wanted more information about the emperor Maximilian, and I got it. And I guess it's interesting to know that there are people walking around and breathing who think usury is a good thing and 1500 was a long time ago. Though if you want an interesting consideration of why usury was considered a sin and now isn't, Parks Medici Money is way better.
Highly not recommended. Sorry.
September 13, 2021
Greg Steinmetz - Najbohatší muž všetkých čias /Život a doba Jakoba Fuggera
Nikdy by som si nepomyslela, že biografia nemeckého renesančného bankára môže byť napísaná tak pútavo. Bežne, keď sa niekto rozhovorí o histórii, zamotá vás do neskutočného množstva faktov a dohadov a vy sa čudujete, či mu nie je blbé hovoriť o niečom tak rozsiahle, až sa vaša pozornosť vypne. Teda takto. Často to býva môj prípad, no autor Greg Steinmetz to dokázal tak, že nemusíte viac googlit kto je kto a zisťovať jednotlivé podrobnosti. Ja som si síce rada prezerala mená Habsburgovcov a hlavne ich podobizne z obrazov. Vizuálne mi to spríjemnilo Fuggerov príbeh.
Jakob Fugger je týmto pre mňa ozaj nadčasový podnikateľ, bankár a finančník. Keby nebolo jeho, dodnes nemáte úver na svoj byt či dom. Pre svojich zákazníkov bol nenahraditeľný a k nepriateľom bezohľadný. Pre dnešok by sa dalo povedať, že akýsi "vlk z Wallstreet". Keď máte moc a peniaze, bude sa vám klaňať aj samotný cisár.
No a keďže som sa narodila v Banskej Bystrici, história Jakoba Fuggera sa týka aj nášho mesta.
Jeden stredoveký výrok hovorí: „Zlatý Augsburg spočíva na medenej Banskej Bystrici.“ V srdci dnešného stredného Slovenska, v Banskej Bystrici (Neusohl), začal v r. 1494 za pomoci krakovského banského inžiniera Jána Thurzu rozmach fuggerovského medeného impéria.
Nikdy by som si nepomyslela, že biografia nemeckého renesančného bankára môže byť napísaná tak pútavo. Bežne, keď sa niekto rozhovorí o histórii, zamotá vás do neskutočného množstva faktov a dohadov a vy sa čudujete, či mu nie je blbé hovoriť o niečom tak rozsiahle, až sa vaša pozornosť vypne. Teda takto. Často to býva môj prípad, no autor Greg Steinmetz to dokázal tak, že nemusíte viac googlit kto je kto a zisťovať jednotlivé podrobnosti. Ja som si síce rada prezerala mená Habsburgovcov a hlavne ich podobizne z obrazov. Vizuálne mi to spríjemnilo Fuggerov príbeh.
Jakob Fugger je týmto pre mňa ozaj nadčasový podnikateľ, bankár a finančník. Keby nebolo jeho, dodnes nemáte úver na svoj byt či dom. Pre svojich zákazníkov bol nenahraditeľný a k nepriateľom bezohľadný. Pre dnešok by sa dalo povedať, že akýsi "vlk z Wallstreet". Keď máte moc a peniaze, bude sa vám klaňať aj samotný cisár.
No a keďže som sa narodila v Banskej Bystrici, história Jakoba Fuggera sa týka aj nášho mesta.
Jeden stredoveký výrok hovorí: „Zlatý Augsburg spočíva na medenej Banskej Bystrici.“ V srdci dnešného stredného Slovenska, v Banskej Bystrici (Neusohl), začal v r. 1494 za pomoci krakovského banského inžiniera Jána Thurzu rozmach fuggerovského medeného impéria.
December 29, 2015
Jacob Flugger got a concession to mines in the 1500s in return for loaning the King money to raise an army, and from that point Flugger created a fortune by doing a couple of things:
1. He used Kings to whom he loaned money as networking tools to increase his fortune.
2. He manipulated those Kings and other powerful people who were slow to repay to increase his fortune.
3. He used the influence of people to whom he had loaned money to change laws and policies as a means to increase his fortune.
4. He lived by the mantra that a deal was a deal and there was no relationship or power or interest that did not benefit him that caused him to show leniency in getting what was owed him.
5. He helped kings and warriors raise armies by lending them money, and expected to be rewarded when conquests were accomplished.
6. If your primary source of income was lending money, it was incumbent upon having one or two clients constantly in need of money who were able to repay the principle and interest or repay them in kind. He found 2 of them througout his life--Sigmund and Maximillian--who constantly sought to increase their personal wealth by raising costly armies to expand their borders.
7. In the matter of lending money, there is no such thing as a conflict of
interest if you are nimble enough and savvy enough to work around the conflicts. Throughout his life, Fugger played church off against priest and king, one business off against another.
8. As the author Greg Steinmetz, a former teacher turned investment manager, points out, Fugger also understood the importance of lifting the Catholic Church's ban on Christians engaging in usury, then defined as lending money at any rate of interest. He therefore successfully worked to have Popes Julius and Leo lift the ban or at least ease the strictures of what was called the Augsburg Contract, a document created by merchants in Nuremberg and Augsburg that permitted lending at 5 percent interest only if the borrower would go bankrupt without the loan. Pope Leo, a Medici of that famous Italian family of bankers, lenders, and merchants who purchased Leo's papacy precisely to enhance their wealth and opportunities. cooperated and lifted the ban. As the author points out, trade between the city states was booming and lifting the restrictions on lending allowed economic growth to explode. Fugger paid for the intellectual support to create justifications for lifting the ban, resulting in a significant economic accomplishment considering that Aristotle and ancient philosophers as well as the founders of the Catholic Church created the ban and preached that violating it would result in an eternity in hell.
9. Perhaps his understanding of the use of balance sheets and other financial statements, required routinely today in business by regulatory agencies, banks and other lenders, and investors to understand the financial position of an enterprise or wealthy household, was one of the most important insights Fugger had. He always knew where his assets were, to whom he owed money, how much he owed, how much he spent and expected to spend, his future income, and at any given moment, how much he was worth. Today, business students, especially those in finance, business consulting, and accounting understand that the mechanics of accounting for income, debt, expenses and receipts is the only reliable language of business, providing the most meaningful insight into an enterprise's promise or lack of promise.
In all of this, he lived and acted as though God had ordained that he be rich and powerful and showed loyalty to the Catholic Church even when Martin Luther was gaining ascendancy. He believed his riches came from God and as such how he treated others, because of his wealth and power, was a god given right. Those who believe that gifts of wealth, geneology, and other positive outcomes come from God are reluctant to believe anything other than their being deserving of such gifts. See, for example, Donald Trump.
But it shouldn't surprise anyone that retaining that wealth was threatened, if only temporarily, when the peasants revolted. In all, he and other men of wealth did not understand the importance of sharing some of that wealth, although Fugger built the famous Augsburg Fuggerei, the first company town, in order to avoid a revolt by his workers and their families. In this, he was not unlike extraordinarily wealthy men alive today.
1. He used Kings to whom he loaned money as networking tools to increase his fortune.
2. He manipulated those Kings and other powerful people who were slow to repay to increase his fortune.
3. He used the influence of people to whom he had loaned money to change laws and policies as a means to increase his fortune.
4. He lived by the mantra that a deal was a deal and there was no relationship or power or interest that did not benefit him that caused him to show leniency in getting what was owed him.
5. He helped kings and warriors raise armies by lending them money, and expected to be rewarded when conquests were accomplished.
6. If your primary source of income was lending money, it was incumbent upon having one or two clients constantly in need of money who were able to repay the principle and interest or repay them in kind. He found 2 of them througout his life--Sigmund and Maximillian--who constantly sought to increase their personal wealth by raising costly armies to expand their borders.
7. In the matter of lending money, there is no such thing as a conflict of
interest if you are nimble enough and savvy enough to work around the conflicts. Throughout his life, Fugger played church off against priest and king, one business off against another.
8. As the author Greg Steinmetz, a former teacher turned investment manager, points out, Fugger also understood the importance of lifting the Catholic Church's ban on Christians engaging in usury, then defined as lending money at any rate of interest. He therefore successfully worked to have Popes Julius and Leo lift the ban or at least ease the strictures of what was called the Augsburg Contract, a document created by merchants in Nuremberg and Augsburg that permitted lending at 5 percent interest only if the borrower would go bankrupt without the loan. Pope Leo, a Medici of that famous Italian family of bankers, lenders, and merchants who purchased Leo's papacy precisely to enhance their wealth and opportunities. cooperated and lifted the ban. As the author points out, trade between the city states was booming and lifting the restrictions on lending allowed economic growth to explode. Fugger paid for the intellectual support to create justifications for lifting the ban, resulting in a significant economic accomplishment considering that Aristotle and ancient philosophers as well as the founders of the Catholic Church created the ban and preached that violating it would result in an eternity in hell.
9. Perhaps his understanding of the use of balance sheets and other financial statements, required routinely today in business by regulatory agencies, banks and other lenders, and investors to understand the financial position of an enterprise or wealthy household, was one of the most important insights Fugger had. He always knew where his assets were, to whom he owed money, how much he owed, how much he spent and expected to spend, his future income, and at any given moment, how much he was worth. Today, business students, especially those in finance, business consulting, and accounting understand that the mechanics of accounting for income, debt, expenses and receipts is the only reliable language of business, providing the most meaningful insight into an enterprise's promise or lack of promise.
In all of this, he lived and acted as though God had ordained that he be rich and powerful and showed loyalty to the Catholic Church even when Martin Luther was gaining ascendancy. He believed his riches came from God and as such how he treated others, because of his wealth and power, was a god given right. Those who believe that gifts of wealth, geneology, and other positive outcomes come from God are reluctant to believe anything other than their being deserving of such gifts. See, for example, Donald Trump.
But it shouldn't surprise anyone that retaining that wealth was threatened, if only temporarily, when the peasants revolted. In all, he and other men of wealth did not understand the importance of sharing some of that wealth, although Fugger built the famous Augsburg Fuggerei, the first company town, in order to avoid a revolt by his workers and their families. In this, he was not unlike extraordinarily wealthy men alive today.
August 16, 2015
For people who like reading about history and industry giants, will like reading about this giant of German capitalism Jacob Fugger, who seems something like the John D. Rockefeller of fifteenth century Germany. Like the later John D. Rockerfuller and (and many other business leaders) he combined industry innovations with ruthless and some would some highly corrupt business practices.
His innovations included the first world news services which allowed him to get information to ahead of his competitors. Furthermore, he for the times very advanced book keeping techniques which always let him know about how much money he had available to loan. He had an instinct for making profitable loans. It helped him become the chief banker of the Catholic church that he was rich enough to be able to move money for the Catholic Church without physically moving the money which would be the standard method of doing of the time which was open to highway robbery. Instead he could send a note from one branch of his bank to another requesting the money be sent to the Church in the other location.
I personally found his role as banker of the Catholic Church during the time of the Reformation (rather than his being the richest man in the word which the author never really proves) as the reason for his place in history of business/economics. Furthermore it in his position he demonstrates his dual personality of banking innovator/robber baron.
His positive contribution to world industry in his role as banker to the Catholic Church is that he got the Pope(who came from a family of bankers) to lift the ban on usury(lending money with interest). In the Medieval world lending money for interest was seen as evil which included such things paying interest on deposit accounts. Bankers caught around these rules by calling “interest” something else (i.e. late fee). Fugger sponsors a series of debates on lending at the end which the Pope lifts the ban on loaning money with interest. It seems that modern capitalism could not come into without being able to lend money with interest. (FYI this ban on usury still exists in the Muslim world; Muslims get around this ban by calling interest something else).
However, Fugger’s being banker to the Church also shows his robber baron/corrupt side. He became the Pope’s banker not just by having the best banking skills but paying the biggest bribes to Churches. He provided the Pope with ideas of making the Pope personally rich by selling church offices to the highest bidders and selling indulgences. Another idea for the Pope to get personally rich which was Fugger’s was to solicit in Germany funds for building a magnificent church in Rome where half of the money would go to the Pope’s personal bank account.
Of course there was a backlash in Germany against such practices of the Church. A monk named Martin Luther became enraged at these practices of the Church and started the Reformation In addition many peasants and priests got mad at the big banks(much like people are mad at the bankers now) at Germany was launched into a series of wars. The wealth of Fugger (and other Bankers) caused many debates that seem quite modern on the nature of wealth and income inequality.
However, Fugger seems to have been a genuinely religious Catholic. He stayed with the Catholic Church and was against the reformation. Like Rockefeller, he spent some money on charitable projects which include some housing for low income people which is still in operation today.
Thus Fugger plays an interesting and significant role in the development of capitalism though I did not always for the reason author gives for his role. The book is readable with the later parts being easier to read than the earlier parts in part because the history is more familiar to modern US readers.
His innovations included the first world news services which allowed him to get information to ahead of his competitors. Furthermore, he for the times very advanced book keeping techniques which always let him know about how much money he had available to loan. He had an instinct for making profitable loans. It helped him become the chief banker of the Catholic church that he was rich enough to be able to move money for the Catholic Church without physically moving the money which would be the standard method of doing of the time which was open to highway robbery. Instead he could send a note from one branch of his bank to another requesting the money be sent to the Church in the other location.
I personally found his role as banker of the Catholic Church during the time of the Reformation (rather than his being the richest man in the word which the author never really proves) as the reason for his place in history of business/economics. Furthermore it in his position he demonstrates his dual personality of banking innovator/robber baron.
His positive contribution to world industry in his role as banker to the Catholic Church is that he got the Pope(who came from a family of bankers) to lift the ban on usury(lending money with interest). In the Medieval world lending money for interest was seen as evil which included such things paying interest on deposit accounts. Bankers caught around these rules by calling “interest” something else (i.e. late fee). Fugger sponsors a series of debates on lending at the end which the Pope lifts the ban on loaning money with interest. It seems that modern capitalism could not come into without being able to lend money with interest. (FYI this ban on usury still exists in the Muslim world; Muslims get around this ban by calling interest something else).
However, Fugger’s being banker to the Church also shows his robber baron/corrupt side. He became the Pope’s banker not just by having the best banking skills but paying the biggest bribes to Churches. He provided the Pope with ideas of making the Pope personally rich by selling church offices to the highest bidders and selling indulgences. Another idea for the Pope to get personally rich which was Fugger’s was to solicit in Germany funds for building a magnificent church in Rome where half of the money would go to the Pope’s personal bank account.
Of course there was a backlash in Germany against such practices of the Church. A monk named Martin Luther became enraged at these practices of the Church and started the Reformation In addition many peasants and priests got mad at the big banks(much like people are mad at the bankers now) at Germany was launched into a series of wars. The wealth of Fugger (and other Bankers) caused many debates that seem quite modern on the nature of wealth and income inequality.
However, Fugger seems to have been a genuinely religious Catholic. He stayed with the Catholic Church and was against the reformation. Like Rockefeller, he spent some money on charitable projects which include some housing for low income people which is still in operation today.
Thus Fugger plays an interesting and significant role in the development of capitalism though I did not always for the reason author gives for his role. The book is readable with the later parts being easier to read than the earlier parts in part because the history is more familiar to modern US readers.
March 14, 2021
Lesenswert und wenn man mal nach Augsburg kommt - eine tolle Kombination. Spannend und nicht zu historisch „verstaubt“ angehaucht.
July 5, 2020
To what standard does pop history have to abide by besides that of its author? In this case, Steinmetz is intent to tell an engrossing story above all else, and perhaps in expense of extensive research and contextualization too. Besides the numerous errors in dating, references to important figures, and some basic facts about Catholic theology, what I found most troubling was the author's ambiguous treatment of Fugger's lifelong corruption, engaged at times for self-preservation but mostly in the name of ever-greater profit from Germany to Hungary and beyond. Anachronistically called 'crony capitalism' on occasion, the serious ramifications of Fugger's bribery measured in bloodshed and reinforced class tensions are overlooked so as to praise him as "the world's richest man" and legitimize the excesses that made such a title possible. Ambition taken to the point of ruin of one's reputation and country is absolved as a modern, secular virtue innovated by Fugger upon the supposedly stifling background of medieval tradition, and any further debate is rendered moot.
Additionally, I found issue with Steinmetz's inexplicable sentence structure, fragmentary beyond anything expected from his history as a journalist. The narrative also lacks a clearly followed chronology, hopping back and forth between years for no apparent reason.
Additionally, I found issue with Steinmetz's inexplicable sentence structure, fragmentary beyond anything expected from his history as a journalist. The narrative also lacks a clearly followed chronology, hopping back and forth between years for no apparent reason.
September 4, 2015
I had such high hopes for this book. I mean, a biography of Jacob Fugger? Who wouldn't be excited? But the narrative could have used a lot more clarity and streamlining and I found the whole thing to be a pretty superficial treatment. I would have liked to know more about the financial workings of Fugger's banking system and perhaps less about Luther or the Peasants' War (both of which are more substantively and thoughtfully described in other books).
July 3, 2018
The book is a little dry, given the difficulty of getting source material, but it's ultimately an interesting view of a man at a unique time and place in history.
August 26, 2021
Niekedy sa stáva, že knihy mapujúce dejiny môžu bez predchádzajúcej znalosti kontextu množstvom informácií, ktoré obsahujú, na čitateľa pôsobiť zmätočne, nezáživne či dokonca odstrašujúco, no Najbohatšiemu mužovi všetkých čias nálepka „nudnosti“ celkom určite neprischne.
Životopisný portrét Jakoba Fuggera, v ktorom Steinmetz s vyšperkovanou zručnosťou prepojil biografické prvky s historickým pozadím doby a informačnú nasýtenosť vyvážil pútavým štýlom, ponúka obraz obyčajného, no nesmierne ambiciózneho príslušníka strednej vrstvy – muža, ktorý videl príležitosti tam, kde ich iní nevideli, ktorý sa nezľakol riskantných investícií a skombinovaním rokmi nadobudnutých znalostí a spoločenských konexií dosiahol nepredstaviteľné.
V dôsledku roly „sivej eminencie“, ktorú v rámci dejín zohral, dnes Fuggerovo meno väčšina laickej verejnosti síce nepozná, jeho vplyv na ich vývoj je však neodškriepiteľný, veď mal takpovediac pod palcom voľbu kráľov i pápežov. Steinmetz hnaný vlastnou zvedavosťou v publikácií načrtáva búrlivú, miestami tŕnistú cestu od chlapca, ktorý sa len tak-tak vyhol budúcnosti cirkevného predstaviteľa, cez študenta bankovníctva až po obchodného priekopníka. Reflektuje Fuggerove machinácie, vďaka ktorým budoval svoje impérium a ovplyvňoval politický či sociálny vývoj a podobu sveta. Steinmetz nám však zobrazením Fuggerových obchodno-spoločenských vzťahov či rozsiahlych transakcií nepribližuje len život človeka, ktorý sa vlastnou šikovnosťou a prešpekulovanosťou ocitol na vrchole pomyselného rebríčka prestíže, ale zároveň čitateľom ponúkol komplexný obraz doby, vrátane sociálnych, kultúrnych či náboženských aspektov života.
Teraz by sme niektoré Fuggerove postupy pravdepodobne považovali za ilegálne (veď už jeho súčasníci upozorňovali na nie práve férovú hru, ktorú rozohral), no v časoch, keď legislatíva v podobe, v akej ju poznáme, bola viac-menej v plienkach, jeho obchod i napriek množstvu neprajníkov prekvital. V priebehu rokov síce jeho obchodné dedičstvo postupne upadalo, no i dnes, storočia po Fuggerovej smrti, jeho odkaz stále prežíva v podobe centier, ktoré vybudoval, či znalostí, ktoré sa (aj) vďaka nemu rozšírili v Európe.
Podnikanie, obchod a ostatné veci s nimi spojené idú mimo mňa, nikdy som sa o problematiku nijako extra nezaujímala, no táto kniha si ma i napriek tomu získala. Nenudila, poučila, zaujala. Nevedela som sa od nej odtrhnúť.
Výborné, výborné a ešte raz - výborné.
Životopisný portrét Jakoba Fuggera, v ktorom Steinmetz s vyšperkovanou zručnosťou prepojil biografické prvky s historickým pozadím doby a informačnú nasýtenosť vyvážil pútavým štýlom, ponúka obraz obyčajného, no nesmierne ambiciózneho príslušníka strednej vrstvy – muža, ktorý videl príležitosti tam, kde ich iní nevideli, ktorý sa nezľakol riskantných investícií a skombinovaním rokmi nadobudnutých znalostí a spoločenských konexií dosiahol nepredstaviteľné.
V dôsledku roly „sivej eminencie“, ktorú v rámci dejín zohral, dnes Fuggerovo meno väčšina laickej verejnosti síce nepozná, jeho vplyv na ich vývoj je však neodškriepiteľný, veď mal takpovediac pod palcom voľbu kráľov i pápežov. Steinmetz hnaný vlastnou zvedavosťou v publikácií načrtáva búrlivú, miestami tŕnistú cestu od chlapca, ktorý sa len tak-tak vyhol budúcnosti cirkevného predstaviteľa, cez študenta bankovníctva až po obchodného priekopníka. Reflektuje Fuggerove machinácie, vďaka ktorým budoval svoje impérium a ovplyvňoval politický či sociálny vývoj a podobu sveta. Steinmetz nám však zobrazením Fuggerových obchodno-spoločenských vzťahov či rozsiahlych transakcií nepribližuje len život človeka, ktorý sa vlastnou šikovnosťou a prešpekulovanosťou ocitol na vrchole pomyselného rebríčka prestíže, ale zároveň čitateľom ponúkol komplexný obraz doby, vrátane sociálnych, kultúrnych či náboženských aspektov života.
Teraz by sme niektoré Fuggerove postupy pravdepodobne považovali za ilegálne (veď už jeho súčasníci upozorňovali na nie práve férovú hru, ktorú rozohral), no v časoch, keď legislatíva v podobe, v akej ju poznáme, bola viac-menej v plienkach, jeho obchod i napriek množstvu neprajníkov prekvital. V priebehu rokov síce jeho obchodné dedičstvo postupne upadalo, no i dnes, storočia po Fuggerovej smrti, jeho odkaz stále prežíva v podobe centier, ktoré vybudoval, či znalostí, ktoré sa (aj) vďaka nemu rozšírili v Európe.
Podnikanie, obchod a ostatné veci s nimi spojené idú mimo mňa, nikdy som sa o problematiku nijako extra nezaujímala, no táto kniha si ma i napriek tomu získala. Nenudila, poučila, zaujala. Nevedela som sa od nej odtrhnúť.
Výborné, výborné a ešte raz - výborné.
August 24, 2024
The exploits of Jacob Fugger would seem a gaudy collection of outrageous conspiracy theories were it not for solid documentary evidence. He achieved early monopolies over the mining of silver, copper, and alum (the mordant used to fix color in the manufacture of cloth). He played a hand in the ruin of the bankers of Florence and the merchants of Venice by underwriting development of a Portuguese spice trade via sea route to India. He orchestrated the emasculation of the Hanseatic League by successively targeting individual members with economic black mail. He pioneered the use of double-entry bookkeeping (learned as a young man in Italy) to carefully manage a vast economic empire that dwarfed those of France and the Holy Roman Empire. Most astonishingly, he fueled the rise of the Hapsburgs by funding their acquisitions of the Netherlands, Burgundy, Hungary, and Spain. Another of his schemes, involving the sale of indulgences meant to surreptitiously repay a bribe under the guise of remodeling the Basilica of St. Peter, triggered the Protestant Reformation. Greg Steinmetz weaves together these narrative threads with an easy but engaging style that makes the book surprisingly hard to put down.
January 24, 2022
Sehr interessant geschtiebenes Buch über Jacob Fugger - der je nach Rechenart reichste Mensch der je auf der Erde gelebt hat.
Gut gefallen hat mir der angenehme Schreibstiel, der durch die Lebensgeschichte von Jakob Fugger führt und dabei auch viele gegeneheiten jener Zeit auftreift.
Das Buch hat mir gezeigt, wie Koruppt und und Hinterhältig Bänker werden können, wenn es keinerlei Regulierungen gibt. Mir war lange Zeit nicht bewusst, dass der Ablasshandel, gegen den Luther damals vorging, ein großes Schuldentilgungsprogram der Kirche war. So wurden die Schulden bei Jacob Fugger beglichen.
Es ist krass zu sehen, wieviel Macht Geld haben kann. Ganze Kriege und Königreiche können durch Kreditzahlungen gestürzt oder aufgebaut werden.
Am Ende stirbt Jakob aber Einsam. Nur nach Geld und Reichtum zu trachten ist kein gutes Lebensziel.
Interessant ist aber auch, wie wenig von dem ursprünglichen Vermögen erhalten geblieben ist. Meine Erwartungen die Wurzel weitverzeigter Machtgefüge und Verschwörungen in dem Buch zu finden wurden entäuscht. Nachfolgende Generationen von Jakob haben das Geld scheinbar einfach nur verballert :)
Gut gefallen hat mir der angenehme Schreibstiel, der durch die Lebensgeschichte von Jakob Fugger führt und dabei auch viele gegeneheiten jener Zeit auftreift.
Das Buch hat mir gezeigt, wie Koruppt und und Hinterhältig Bänker werden können, wenn es keinerlei Regulierungen gibt. Mir war lange Zeit nicht bewusst, dass der Ablasshandel, gegen den Luther damals vorging, ein großes Schuldentilgungsprogram der Kirche war. So wurden die Schulden bei Jacob Fugger beglichen.
Es ist krass zu sehen, wieviel Macht Geld haben kann. Ganze Kriege und Königreiche können durch Kreditzahlungen gestürzt oder aufgebaut werden.
Am Ende stirbt Jakob aber Einsam. Nur nach Geld und Reichtum zu trachten ist kein gutes Lebensziel.
Interessant ist aber auch, wie wenig von dem ursprünglichen Vermögen erhalten geblieben ist. Meine Erwartungen die Wurzel weitverzeigter Machtgefüge und Verschwörungen in dem Buch zu finden wurden entäuscht. Nachfolgende Generationen von Jakob haben das Geld scheinbar einfach nur verballert :)
July 24, 2021
Presne si pamätám ten moment, ako ma osobnosť Fuggera zaujala ešte na vysokej škole. Preto ma veľmi potešilo, keď táto kniha vyšla v slovenskom preklade a nesklamal som sa.
Tak čítavý a plastický opis osobností a udalostí okolo jedného z najbohatších ľudí vo svetových dejinách si zaslúži pochvalu. Jakob Fugger je produktom svojej doby, no ešte viac je doba po ňom produktom Jakoba Fuggera. Nebyť jeho nevieme, či by mnohé spoločensko-ekonomické zmeny beztak nenastali. Fugger však v jednej osobe tieto reformy agregoval a akceleroval. Jeho príbeh stojí za to si prečítať už len kvôli tomu, že sa nadlho a tak výrazne zapísal do svetových dejín.
Tak čítavý a plastický opis osobností a udalostí okolo jedného z najbohatších ľudí vo svetových dejinách si zaslúži pochvalu. Jakob Fugger je produktom svojej doby, no ešte viac je doba po ňom produktom Jakoba Fuggera. Nebyť jeho nevieme, či by mnohé spoločensko-ekonomické zmeny beztak nenastali. Fugger však v jednej osobe tieto reformy agregoval a akceleroval. Jeho príbeh stojí za to si prečítať už len kvôli tomu, že sa nadlho a tak výrazne zapísal do svetových dejín.
July 3, 2022
Zaujímavá téma života a kariéry kupca Jakoba Fuggera, ktorý svojím podnikaním ovplyvnil chod dejín - a to doslovne. Dosadzoval cisárov a panovníkov, motivoval reformátorov... Resumé mal skutočne pestré a je super mať k nemu knihu, ktorá to spája celé dokopy.
Na druhej strane, ústredný motív bohatého bieleho muža a jeho úspechov v podnikateľskom poli ma neuveriteľne odrádzala od čítania. Hoc ma aj zaujímalo, ako to s tými Habsburgovcami a Lutherom dopadne, predstava ďalšej bane, ktorú prevezme a ďalšieho vojnového ťaženia, ktoré zafinancuje... Bolo to náročné. 3/5.
Na druhej strane, ústredný motív bohatého bieleho muža a jeho úspechov v podnikateľskom poli ma neuveriteľne odrádzala od čítania. Hoc ma aj zaujímalo, ako to s tými Habsburgovcami a Lutherom dopadne, predstava ďalšej bane, ktorú prevezme a ďalšieho vojnového ťaženia, ktoré zafinancuje... Bolo to náročné. 3/5.
September 18, 2024
This was an excellent book. I had known the name "Fugger" from references in Renaissance-era history in terms of lending money to kings of the time, but this gave a brilliant feel for the man and the profession of banking in that era.
July 18, 2020
fascinating! Jacob's life is very interesting - this book does a great job of weaving the "life" and the "times" together very well. I learned alot. There is so much going on, it sometimes got tricky to keep up with all the characters.
October 6, 2021
Ta książka tak bardzo lekceważy fakty historyczne, że może jedynie wyrządzić więcej zła czytelnikowi niż przynieść pożytku.
December 12, 2021
Veľmi zaujímavé a skvelo napísané.
July 16, 2022
Must read for every banker, perhaps should be even thought at economic schools on history classes. Interesting i have never heard of Fugger before my friend gave me this book…
Very interested and easy reading, unbelieveable stories and influence this guy had 500years ago. I think anyone who likes to read biographies about successful business, influential people or leaders (Musk, Jobs, Rockefeller, Ford or other) will enjoy this book too.
Very interested and easy reading, unbelieveable stories and influence this guy had 500years ago. I think anyone who likes to read biographies about successful business, influential people or leaders (Musk, Jobs, Rockefeller, Ford or other) will enjoy this book too.
May 2, 2018
In his book “The Richest Man Who Ever Lived” Greg Steinmetz makes it apparently clear that to become rich one has to manipulate the system. Five centuries ago, Europe emerging from the Dark Ages gave birth to the concept of capitalism. The merchant class financed and ran empires – even the Papacy – which led to the Reformation and birth of Protestants.
Jacob Fugger, the cloth merchant turned money lender turned banker is the first recorded millionaire in the world. When he joined the family firm “Ulrich Fugger and Brothers” in 1480, the firm’s equity (owner’s capital) was around 50,000 florins. Forty-five years later in when he died on 28th December 1525, the firm now known as “Jacob Fugger and Nephews” had an equity of 2.02 million florins, (figures from the Balance Sheet of 1527).
The 1527 balance sheet offers a fair approximation. On the left side of the page are the assets or the things Fugger owned. The biggest items were loans. Ferdinand owed him 651,000 florins on loans backed by the mines of Tyrol. Charles and the Kingdom of Spain owed him 500,000, backed by the mercury mines of the Maestrazgos. The king of Portugal owed him 18,000. The viceroy of Naples, which was under Ferdinand’s control, owed him 15,000. Kasimir of Brandenburg owed him 2,000, totalling 1,186,000 florins.
The next largest item, 380,000 florins, was inventory. This was the copper and textiles in the Fugger warehouses. Then came real estate at 150,000 florins. Breaking it down, it valued Weissenhorn and the other Fugger estates at 70,000, the Augsburg properties at 57,000, the Antwerp office at 15,000 and the Rome office at 6,000. It valued Fugger’s mines at 270,000, presumably based on the price Fugger paid rather than the value of the ore in the ground. Other assets—cash plus various loans and investments — came to another million.
There was nothing like the Securities & Exchange Commission to keep him honest. Nor were there fixed rules for how to do things like value assets and recognize revenue. Fugger could prepare the books any way he pleased. He took a path of prudence. He wrote off worthless assets and classified others as doubtful. Among those in the doubtful category were 260,000 florins’ worth of loans to Hungary, a 113,200-florin loan to Alexi Thurzo and a 20,958-florin loan to Pope Leo X, the pope who sanctioned money-lending. Leo had died but Fugger held a ring as collateral, so there was still a chance of collection if Leo’s family wanted the ring back. Provisioning for NPAs (Non Performing Assets) is the bugaboo of present day bankers. Without any Basel norms, Fugger provisioned for 394,158 florins as debts doubtful of recovery, a whopping 33.23%. Present day bankers, in spite of numerous regulators, would reclassify, window dress and undertake unethical (not illegal) practices to avoid making such high provisioning as demanded by prudence. [Future events proved as anticipated by Fugger and as advised to his successor, his nephew Anton, the Hungarian mines would once again be in their control, but in 1525, prudence dictated full provisioning 260,000 florins against the loan of 270,000 florins].
On the other side of the page were the liabilities of 816,000 florins. The Fuggers owed 340,000 florins to creditors in Spain, 186,000 to other creditors and 290,000 to depositors. The most striking aspect of the 1527 balance sheet was neither the assets nor the liabilities but the difference between the two. The difference was the equity or what the business was worth. It can be equated with the value of Fugger’s personal fortune at the time of his death. His nephews had shares in the business, but he controlled the business completely and had full authority to direct how the money was spent. When he talks in his epitaph about being “second to none in the acquisition of extraordinary wealth,” he is referring to the equity. It came to 2.02 million florins. Maybe another businessman before Fugger was worth more than a million in a standard European currency but, if so, none ever put it on paper. If one believes the accounting statements of the Medici, the Medici family, or at least its bank, was never worth more than 56,000 florins. Fugger can claim to be the first millionaire for this reason.
The net worth of “Jacob Fugger and Nephews” was close to 2% of all European Economic Output, which none of the modern day financial czars have equalled. In terms of influence and reach, the Rothschilds could be an example in pre war Germany, but nowhere equal to Jacob Fugger’s European (and indirectly world) influence.
Jacob Fugger lived in an era when most of his business practices sharp and shady, by modern standards. It was normal to undercut competition by quoting lower prices, cornering markets to establish monopolies and once the competition withdrew to make super profits. All these acts would now-a-days result in investigation by various regulators. In Jacob Fugger’s era there was no standardized accounting policies. Fugger was amongst the first businessmen to adopt double entry Bookkeeping, even though Florentine bankers had been following the system from 1350s. Luca Pacioli’s treatise on double entry bookkeeping was still in the future (by about maybe twenty years).
The conclusion reached, is to become rich one should have no human attributes (barring the legal requirements) and should be devoted single mindedly to making profits, gaming the system where possible. Whatever philanthropic activities one undertakes, should also go to further the profits indirectly.
Jacob Fugger’s philanthropic act of the housing scheme for poor – the Fuggerei – is still working in Augsburg after 500 years. They still charge the annual rent of ONE FLORIN equivalent to about 85 Euro cents. The residents are old Catholics and eighteen generations of Fuggers have continued maintaining it, and still do, though the town has taken on some responsibility for its functioning.
On February 24, 1944, 300 B-17 bombers from England targeted the Messerschmidt operation outside the city of Augsburg and faced little resistance as they dropped 4,300 bombs during a daylight raid on Europe’s largest aircraft factory. Twice as many bombers returned that night. This time, they had a different target: civilians. Bombers levelled the city. They knocked the top off the Perlach Tower and destroyed City Hall. The Fugger Palace, then a warehouse, went up in flames. The Fugger Chapel at St. Anne survived, but fires badly damaged the crypt and the Dürer designs. The Fuggerei fared worse. The settlement was occupied when the raid came. One resident died when he prematurely left the on-site shelter. Others survived but their homes were gone.
On the day after the bombing, three prominent Fugger descendants[Josef Ernst Count Fugger von Glott, later took part in the Stauffenberg plot to kill Hitler, After the war, the Americans released him from a Nazi prison and he served in Germany’s first post-war parliament. Count Alexander Fugger-Babenhausen runs the foundation that oversees the housing project and other family projects. After graduating from Harvard, he worked for Morgan Stanley and the private equity firm Texas Pacific Group. He and the others are descended from Jacob’s brothers, not Jacob himself. Jacob’s only direct descendants come through his illegitimate daughter, Mechtild Belz. At the author’s request, genealogists looked for living direct descendants of Jacob and found six. They are members of a noble family, the Leutrum von Ertingens, from the Stuttgart area. One of them is a banker like his distant ancestor. Five centuries have passed since Mechtild. There could be dozens if not hundreds of others who are descended from her, but they are hard to find because records on most commoners don’t go back that far.] signed a pledge to rebuild the Fuggerei out of their own funds. They worried that if they didn’t, their name would be forgotten. These Fuggers, seventeen generations after Jacob Fugger, were nowhere near as rich as their ancestors, but they still enjoyed income on land Jacob acquired centuries earlier. In rebuilding the complex, they got materials from the American occupying forces and followed the original plans except with better plumbing. They increased the number of units from 106 to 140.
While the Fuggers rebuilt the Fuggerei, other Augsburgers rebuilt the city centre as best they could. It now looks much like it did in Fugger’s time, but the similarity goes no deeper than the facades. At the Fugger Palace, only the entrance and the Damenhof courtyard, now a café where tourists jump into the fountain with bare feet for pictures, look like they did in Fugger’s day. Lawyers, dentists and accountants have offices in the rooms where the Fuggers dined with emperors and a Vatican emissary interrogated Luther. The house where Fugger’s brothers lived and worked is a department store. A bay window on the second floor sticks out from the shoe department. Done up in Renaissance style, it marks the spot of Fugger’s Golden Counting Room. Nearby, a Nuremberg insurance company operates the Prince Fugger Private Bank that its literature says “combines the principle and visionary energy” of its famous founder. The family owns a small stake for the sake of continuity. Augsburg goes by the nickname Fuggerstadt or Fugger City. There are references to Fugger everywhere. In the old town, there is a statue of Hans Fugger, one of Fugger’s grandnephews and a great patron of the arts. The Fuggerei has a bust of Jacob.
I have read a good number of biographies and this work by Greg Steinmetz is praiseworthy. The book on Jacob Fugger is one of the few available in English and Greg Steinmetz deserves all kudos for his effort and excellent presentation.
Jacob Fugger, the cloth merchant turned money lender turned banker is the first recorded millionaire in the world. When he joined the family firm “Ulrich Fugger and Brothers” in 1480, the firm’s equity (owner’s capital) was around 50,000 florins. Forty-five years later in when he died on 28th December 1525, the firm now known as “Jacob Fugger and Nephews” had an equity of 2.02 million florins, (figures from the Balance Sheet of 1527).
The 1527 balance sheet offers a fair approximation. On the left side of the page are the assets or the things Fugger owned. The biggest items were loans. Ferdinand owed him 651,000 florins on loans backed by the mines of Tyrol. Charles and the Kingdom of Spain owed him 500,000, backed by the mercury mines of the Maestrazgos. The king of Portugal owed him 18,000. The viceroy of Naples, which was under Ferdinand’s control, owed him 15,000. Kasimir of Brandenburg owed him 2,000, totalling 1,186,000 florins.
The next largest item, 380,000 florins, was inventory. This was the copper and textiles in the Fugger warehouses. Then came real estate at 150,000 florins. Breaking it down, it valued Weissenhorn and the other Fugger estates at 70,000, the Augsburg properties at 57,000, the Antwerp office at 15,000 and the Rome office at 6,000. It valued Fugger’s mines at 270,000, presumably based on the price Fugger paid rather than the value of the ore in the ground. Other assets—cash plus various loans and investments — came to another million.
There was nothing like the Securities & Exchange Commission to keep him honest. Nor were there fixed rules for how to do things like value assets and recognize revenue. Fugger could prepare the books any way he pleased. He took a path of prudence. He wrote off worthless assets and classified others as doubtful. Among those in the doubtful category were 260,000 florins’ worth of loans to Hungary, a 113,200-florin loan to Alexi Thurzo and a 20,958-florin loan to Pope Leo X, the pope who sanctioned money-lending. Leo had died but Fugger held a ring as collateral, so there was still a chance of collection if Leo’s family wanted the ring back. Provisioning for NPAs (Non Performing Assets) is the bugaboo of present day bankers. Without any Basel norms, Fugger provisioned for 394,158 florins as debts doubtful of recovery, a whopping 33.23%. Present day bankers, in spite of numerous regulators, would reclassify, window dress and undertake unethical (not illegal) practices to avoid making such high provisioning as demanded by prudence. [Future events proved as anticipated by Fugger and as advised to his successor, his nephew Anton, the Hungarian mines would once again be in their control, but in 1525, prudence dictated full provisioning 260,000 florins against the loan of 270,000 florins].
On the other side of the page were the liabilities of 816,000 florins. The Fuggers owed 340,000 florins to creditors in Spain, 186,000 to other creditors and 290,000 to depositors. The most striking aspect of the 1527 balance sheet was neither the assets nor the liabilities but the difference between the two. The difference was the equity or what the business was worth. It can be equated with the value of Fugger’s personal fortune at the time of his death. His nephews had shares in the business, but he controlled the business completely and had full authority to direct how the money was spent. When he talks in his epitaph about being “second to none in the acquisition of extraordinary wealth,” he is referring to the equity. It came to 2.02 million florins. Maybe another businessman before Fugger was worth more than a million in a standard European currency but, if so, none ever put it on paper. If one believes the accounting statements of the Medici, the Medici family, or at least its bank, was never worth more than 56,000 florins. Fugger can claim to be the first millionaire for this reason.
The net worth of “Jacob Fugger and Nephews” was close to 2% of all European Economic Output, which none of the modern day financial czars have equalled. In terms of influence and reach, the Rothschilds could be an example in pre war Germany, but nowhere equal to Jacob Fugger’s European (and indirectly world) influence.
Jacob Fugger lived in an era when most of his business practices sharp and shady, by modern standards. It was normal to undercut competition by quoting lower prices, cornering markets to establish monopolies and once the competition withdrew to make super profits. All these acts would now-a-days result in investigation by various regulators. In Jacob Fugger’s era there was no standardized accounting policies. Fugger was amongst the first businessmen to adopt double entry Bookkeeping, even though Florentine bankers had been following the system from 1350s. Luca Pacioli’s treatise on double entry bookkeeping was still in the future (by about maybe twenty years).
The conclusion reached, is to become rich one should have no human attributes (barring the legal requirements) and should be devoted single mindedly to making profits, gaming the system where possible. Whatever philanthropic activities one undertakes, should also go to further the profits indirectly.
Jacob Fugger’s philanthropic act of the housing scheme for poor – the Fuggerei – is still working in Augsburg after 500 years. They still charge the annual rent of ONE FLORIN equivalent to about 85 Euro cents. The residents are old Catholics and eighteen generations of Fuggers have continued maintaining it, and still do, though the town has taken on some responsibility for its functioning.
On February 24, 1944, 300 B-17 bombers from England targeted the Messerschmidt operation outside the city of Augsburg and faced little resistance as they dropped 4,300 bombs during a daylight raid on Europe’s largest aircraft factory. Twice as many bombers returned that night. This time, they had a different target: civilians. Bombers levelled the city. They knocked the top off the Perlach Tower and destroyed City Hall. The Fugger Palace, then a warehouse, went up in flames. The Fugger Chapel at St. Anne survived, but fires badly damaged the crypt and the Dürer designs. The Fuggerei fared worse. The settlement was occupied when the raid came. One resident died when he prematurely left the on-site shelter. Others survived but their homes were gone.
On the day after the bombing, three prominent Fugger descendants[Josef Ernst Count Fugger von Glott, later took part in the Stauffenberg plot to kill Hitler, After the war, the Americans released him from a Nazi prison and he served in Germany’s first post-war parliament. Count Alexander Fugger-Babenhausen runs the foundation that oversees the housing project and other family projects. After graduating from Harvard, he worked for Morgan Stanley and the private equity firm Texas Pacific Group. He and the others are descended from Jacob’s brothers, not Jacob himself. Jacob’s only direct descendants come through his illegitimate daughter, Mechtild Belz. At the author’s request, genealogists looked for living direct descendants of Jacob and found six. They are members of a noble family, the Leutrum von Ertingens, from the Stuttgart area. One of them is a banker like his distant ancestor. Five centuries have passed since Mechtild. There could be dozens if not hundreds of others who are descended from her, but they are hard to find because records on most commoners don’t go back that far.] signed a pledge to rebuild the Fuggerei out of their own funds. They worried that if they didn’t, their name would be forgotten. These Fuggers, seventeen generations after Jacob Fugger, were nowhere near as rich as their ancestors, but they still enjoyed income on land Jacob acquired centuries earlier. In rebuilding the complex, they got materials from the American occupying forces and followed the original plans except with better plumbing. They increased the number of units from 106 to 140.
While the Fuggers rebuilt the Fuggerei, other Augsburgers rebuilt the city centre as best they could. It now looks much like it did in Fugger’s time, but the similarity goes no deeper than the facades. At the Fugger Palace, only the entrance and the Damenhof courtyard, now a café where tourists jump into the fountain with bare feet for pictures, look like they did in Fugger’s day. Lawyers, dentists and accountants have offices in the rooms where the Fuggers dined with emperors and a Vatican emissary interrogated Luther. The house where Fugger’s brothers lived and worked is a department store. A bay window on the second floor sticks out from the shoe department. Done up in Renaissance style, it marks the spot of Fugger’s Golden Counting Room. Nearby, a Nuremberg insurance company operates the Prince Fugger Private Bank that its literature says “combines the principle and visionary energy” of its famous founder. The family owns a small stake for the sake of continuity. Augsburg goes by the nickname Fuggerstadt or Fugger City. There are references to Fugger everywhere. In the old town, there is a statue of Hans Fugger, one of Fugger’s grandnephews and a great patron of the arts. The Fuggerei has a bust of Jacob.
I have read a good number of biographies and this work by Greg Steinmetz is praiseworthy. The book on Jacob Fugger is one of the few available in English and Greg Steinmetz deserves all kudos for his effort and excellent presentation.
March 31, 2021
A fascinating book and I can't believe that I have never heard of Fugger before. This book is so full of information and detail that I had to pace myself. But a great story of influence and what merchants had to go through to pick the right royal and how to stay in their good books despite strong opposition. What a clever man, he must have been such a diplomat.
While I got a clear picture of his turbulent times and the things he did, I still felt I did not get a good understanding of the man himself. It was almost that his actions got the attention. However, I guess it might be difficult to get more information on the man himself from so many centuries ago.
Once I had read it, I gave it to my husband to read. We don't usually read the same kind of books but he found it equally as fascinating as I did. He was also amazed at the amount of information about the man and his times.
While I got a clear picture of his turbulent times and the things he did, I still felt I did not get a good understanding of the man himself. It was almost that his actions got the attention. However, I guess it might be difficult to get more information on the man himself from so many centuries ago.
Once I had read it, I gave it to my husband to read. We don't usually read the same kind of books but he found it equally as fascinating as I did. He was also amazed at the amount of information about the man and his times.
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