By Familie. Medici; House of Medici; Parks, Tim; House of Medici

The Medici are recognized because the rulers of Florence on the excessive aspect of the Renaissance. Their strength is derived from the kinfolk financial institution, and this publication tells the attention-grabbing, usually bloody tale of the kin and the dramatic improvement and cave in in their financial institution (from Cosimo who took it over in 1419 to his grandson Lorenzo the terrific who presided over its precipitous decline). The Medici confronted it appears insuperable difficulties: How did a banker take care of the truth that the Church seemed curiosity as a sin and had made it unlawful? How in a small republic like Florence may perhaps he stay away from having his wealth taken away through taxation? however the financial institution grew to become critical to the Church. And the kinfolk thoroughly subverted Florence's claims to being democratic. They ran the town. "Medici funds" explores a very important second within the passage from the center a while to the trendy global, a second whilst our personal attitudes to funds and morals have been being shaped. To learn this publication is to appreciate how a lot the Renaissance has to inform us approximately our personal global. "Medici funds" is likely one of the release titles in a brand new sequence, "Atlas Books", edited by way of James Atlas. "Atlas Books" pairs high-quality writers with tales of the commercial forces that experience formed the realm, in a brand new style - the company booklet as literature

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They pass the barber shaving customers at a corner. The apothecary is grinding nutmeg for cough relief. There are onions for your piles. Everything is present. Every task is clear. That is the natural order: people getting by with the sweat of their brows, as God commanded. Even the feudal lord in the country keeps an army and hires it out, governs his lands. That is understandable. Even the priest helps your soul to paradise when the solid flesh finally melts and the breath rattles its last. Who would deny the need for a church?

Otherwise, who knows what complicity might arise HW871501_Text 18/07/2013 18:03:50 50 Tim Parks between a branch director and his staff in a distant city? In addition to the official ledgers, there was also a “secret book” in which the director wrote down such things as the discretionary deposits of clients who wished to remain anonymous. And salaries. No one must know another’s salary. There must be no opportunity for private gripes and local conspiracies against the head office. The secret book was made of parchment, not paper, to last longer, and kept under lock and key, often in the director’s bedroom.

It is losing value against the Venetian ducat, and the Roman florin, not to mention Geneva’s golden mark. These experts know which mints are reducing or increasing the gold content, which currencies are silver based and which gold. Milan’s silver imperial just goes down and down. They know which governments are trying to intervene in the market, which way the speculators are moving. They get together daily and fix the rates as honestly as they can. Why, then, is the florin always worth about 4 pence more in Florence than it is in London?

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