Robert Sobel, "The Pursuit of Wealth: The Incredible Story of Money Thoughout the Ages"

An epic saga that recounts the turbulent history of money. The Pursuit of Wealth is a fascinating 5,000 year journey through the evolution of money and investing. From risk versus return in Mesopotamia through today's rough-and-tumble, high-stakes stock markets, this behind-the-scenes tale will intrigue both financial historians and history-minded investors alike.

Barron's columnist Robert Sobel weaves a richly textured tale of risk and the never ending quest for wealth since the dawn of man. The Pursuit of Wealth—filled with gripping stories, tales of war, and legacies of great fortunes won and lost—is much more than simply a compelling read; it provides valuable insights that can be applied to today's turbulent times.

From the Back Cover
Money—How it has built nations, destroyed dynasties, and shaped every facet of human history. Mesopotamian farmers used it to irrigate their crops… Roman armies to expand Caesar's reach throughout Europe and Africa… Incan rulers to build temples and civilizations… U.S. industrialists to push the frontiers of corporate achievement.

The Pursuit of Wealth tells the fascinating history of how the desire for money has fueled humankind's greatest achievements—and produced our most profound tragedies. Readers from all walks of life—from academics in search of a compelling narrative to investors and business persons looking for time-tested solutions to age-old dilemmas—will discover how and why money has become inextricably interwined with every thread in the fabric of human history. Gripping stories and legacies of great fortunes won and lost include:

• Historical giants like Alexander the Great and Napoleon—and how their battle-honed lessons on wealth and conquest still ring true in today's burgeoning economy
• Analyses of twelfth century Venetian financial empires that provide stunning parallels and insights into today's global business and investment arena
• How modern rules, regulations, and laws of commerce have developed from 5000 B.C. through today's technological battleground—and what to look for next

No single idea has had more impact on the development of human history—and been less understood—than the drive for money. The Pursuit of Wealth is the first comprehensive investigation into this essential topic. Each page will open your eyes to the startling ways and means of property acquisition throughout history—and provide you with vital clues that can help you understand today's financial world.

Contents

Introduction
Acknowledgments

1 The Ancient World
 The Ancient Near East: Economies Dominated by Political and Religious Institutions
 Hellenic Greece: Seafaring Entrepreneurs

2 The Imperial Age of Alexander and Rome
 The Hellenistic Civilization
 The Roman Republic: Private Enterprise Unleashed
 The Roman Empire

3 The European Middle Ages: The Birth of a New Economic Age
 The Manorial Age
 The Next Invasions of Europe
 The Economic Quickening and the Crusades
 The Lenders

4 The Italian Bankers and Their Clients
 The Results of the Crusades
 The Venetian Way
 Florence
 The Venice of the North
 The Bankers
 The End of the Era

5 The Atlantic Age
 The Drive to the East, the Way to the West
 The Portuguese Pioneers
 Portugal and the Slave Trade
 Other European Ventures in the Slave Trade
 The Portuguese Empire
 Spain and the Race for Wealth

6 Europe's American Empires
 The Conquistadores
 The Dawn of Mercantilism
 The New Europe of the Fuggers
 The Price Revolution and Economic Stimulation
 The Dutch Maritime Empire
 Speculators and Bubbles

7 The English Advantage
 John Hawkins and the Slave Trade
 The Joint Stock Companies
 The Sugar Trade
 New England
 The Dutch Challenge
 The Realization of Wealth in the North
 Southern Tobacco
 Northern Merchants

8 The American Paths to Wealth
 Wealth and the Background to the American Revolution
 The Economics of Protest
 Alternative Paths to Wealth in the New Nation
 Lotteries As a Means to Obtain Wealth and Raise Funds
 The New Government
 The Road to the Constitution
 The Jeffersonian Conception of Wealth
 Alexander Hamilton and the Creation of the National Credit

9 Industrial Wealth
 Increased Population and Agriculture
 The Industrial Revolution
 Technology and the Textile Industry
 The Steam Engine and Its Impact
 Eli Whitney and the Emergence of the Cotton South
 Samuel Slater, Francis Cabot Lowell, and the Emergence of the Industrial North
 The Quaker Alternative

10 The Mechanization of Agriculture
 Cyrus McCormick and the Reaper
 The Need for Transportation
 Infrastructure and Wealth: The Erie Canal
 Canal Mania
 John Jacob Astor and Real Estate

11 Infrastructure and Wealth
 Small Beginnings on Wall Street
 The New Nation's First Major Stock Speculator
 The New York Stock and Exchange Board
 The Importance of Railroads
 The New York Central
 The Pennsylvania Railroad
 The Telegraph

12 Emperor Wheat and King Cotton
 Northern Wheat
 Profits on the Plantations
 The Economics of Slavery
 The Domestic Slave Trade
 "Cotton is King"

13 Gold, Silver, and the Civil War
 Jay Cooke: Financing the Union Cause
 The Wall Street Scene
 The Gold Ring
 Resumption of Specie Payments
 The Silver Bonanza

14 The Impact of the Transcontinentals
 Wealth in the Western Rails
 Selling Ice
 The Revolution in Meatpacking
 Railroads and Wealth from Beer
 Wealth from Cattle
 The Farmer and the West
 The Election of 1896

15 The Arrival of Big Business
 Pools and Trusts
 The Industrial Corporation
 The Promoter
 The New Face of Investment Banking: J. P. Morgan
 Carnegie and Morgan
 The Carnegie Millionaires and Spindletop

16 The Government-Industrial Complex, 1914-1929
 The American Government on the Eve of War
 World War I: The Neutrality Phase
 American Business and the War
 The War Industries Board
 The Creation of Radio Corporation of America
 The Government and Business during the Harding-Coolidge Years
 U.S. Government and Business Involvement in Latin America
 Wall Street's Pursuit of Wealth Overseas
 Helping Europe and Reaping the Financial Rewards

17 The Great Bull Market of the 1920s
 A. P. Giannini: Financing Small Business
 The Glamour Industries: Radio, Motion Pictures, and Automobiles
 Organized Crime: Making Money from Prohibition
 The Florida Land Boom
 The Great Bull Market

18 The Old and the New in Post-World War II America
 The Stock Market Slumbers
 The Housing Boom
 Gene Ferkauf, the Duke of Discounting
 The Automobile Industry Awakens
 The Motelling of America
 The McDonald's Concept
 Frederick Terman and the Arrival of the Military-Industrial-Educational Complex

19 The Revival of the Securities Markets
 The Puzzling Case of Television Securities
 The Coming of the Computer
 Charles Merrill, Keith Funston, and People's Capitalism
 Mutual Funds
 Pension Funds
 The Great Bull Market of the 1960s
 The Craze for New Issues

20 Creating Wealth During the Great Inflation
 The Beginning of Inflation
 Profiting from the Higher Price of Petroleum
 The Golden Opportunity
 Collectibles
 Real Estate
 The Money Market Alternative
 Playing the Horses in a New Way
 The End of the Great Deflation and the Coming of the New Era

21 The Democratization of Wealth
 The New Industries: Personal Computers
 The New Industries: Health Care Transformed
 The Rebirth of Equities
 Metromedia Shows the Way
 Beatrice at the Carverie
 The Oil Well on the NYSE Floor
 The Changing Face of Savings
 Epilogue

Index

Tags: History, Economics, Finance, WorldPolitics

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