Credit and Power: The Paradox at the Heart of the British National Debt

This book explores how credit, money created ex nihilo by financiers, played a crucial role in raising British government war loans between 1793 and 1815. It reveals a paradoxical relationship between the government and its creditors, where the creditors had little real money to lend and were often reliant on the government for their own solvency. The book also highlights the power granted to the Bank of England over credit and the money supply, which had unprecedented and influential effects on contemporary finance.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 256 pages
Publication date: 01 August 2022
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

This captivating book delves into the intriguing and often overlooked role that credit, money created ex nihilo by financiers, played in raising the British government's war loans between 1793 and 1815. Through a meticulous exploration of contemporary objections to the National Debt, a startling paradox emerges, revealing how the government's ostensible creditors, who were supposed to provide the necessary funds, often lacked substantial real money to lend. Instead, they often relied on the very government they were lending to for their own financial solvency. By tracing the careers of unsuccessful loan contractors who went bankrupt lending to the government, as well as the triumphant rise of the House of Rothschild, who successfully exported the British system of war financing abroad with the advent of peace, the symbiotic relationship between the British government and its creditors is unveiled. Furthermore, the book highlights the unprecedented power granted to the (technically bankrupt) Bank of England over credit and the money supply, a development that filled many contemporaries with horror and had far-reaching consequences. This is a tale of bankruptcy, stock market manipulation, bribery, and institutional corruption that continues to exert its influence today, making it of utmost interest to anyone seeking to understand government financing, debt, and the origins of modern finance.

Weight: 470g
Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367614973