Private Banking and Financial Networks in the Crown of Aragon during the Fourteenth Century
ISBN: 978-1-80071-880-7, eISBN: 978-1-80071-879-1
Publication date: 30 September 2021
Abstract
This chapter deals with the development of banking in the Crown of Aragon from the end of the thirteenth century through the establishment of money changers, which followed similar patterns as in other Western European territories. It starts with a review of existing literature and follows with an explanation on the different banking services provided by money changers and the specific legal framework that supported such activities. It then examines the geographical distribution of private banks in cities and towns within the domains of the kings of Aragon, as well as their evolution throughout the fourteenth century. After that, it offers an analysis of the most common professional profiles among these bankers and financers. Finally, drawing on a heterogeneous pool of unpublished data, it seeks to shed light on the diversity of investors and clients of these establishments, a crucial proof of their role in integrated financial markets.
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Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments
A preliminary short version of this article was presented as a paper at the conference The development of financial centers in Europe, 1300–1700. It was held in memory of Prof. Peter Spufford and took place at the Queen's College of Cambridge University on September 27, 2018. I am indebted to the organizers and all the participants for their comments and suggestions. The final text has been prepared within the research project “Economic Inequality in Catalan and Majorcan Towns in the Later Middle Ages Through the Sources of Taxes on Wealth” (PGC-2018-100979-B-C22), funded by the Spanish government's Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, as well as the research group “Rent and Taxation in late medieval Catalonia” (2017 SGR 1068) funded by the Generalitat de Catalunya in collaboration between the University of Girona and the Spanish National Research Council. I also acknowledge Pol Bridgewater for correcting my English.
Citation
Sala, A.R. (2021), "Private Banking and Financial Networks in the Crown of Aragon during the Fourteenth Century", Hanes, C. and Wolcott, S. (Ed.) Research in Economic History (Research in Economic History, Vol. 37), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 129-168. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0363-326820210000037004
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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