Family Firms and Merchant Capitalism in Early Modern Europe

This fascinating study follows the fortunes of the Höchstetter family, merchant-manufacturers and financiers of Augsburg, Germany in the late-fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, and sheds light on the economic and social history of failure and resilience in early modern Europe.

Autorentext

Thomas Max Safley is Professor of Early Modern European History at the University of Pennsylvania, USA.

Inhalt

List of Figures. List of Maps. Note on Money. Note on Translations. Acknowledgements. Introduction. 1. Family Firms Considered: Ambrosius and Hans, the Brothers Höchstetter and Associates. 2. Capitalistic Practices: The Höchstetter Brassworks at Pflach. 3. Crisis and Insolvency: Information Management by and about the Höchstetters. 4. Bankruptcy: Local Institutions and their Consequences 5. Bankruptcy: Financial Markets and Credit Networks. 6. Ruin and Recovery: The Question of Resilience and the Höchstetter Family Firm. Conclusion. Appendix 1: Rising Höchstetter Fortunes. Appendix 2: Höchstetter Creditors. Bibliography. Index.