- Jacob Fugger
Jacob Fugger ( _de. Jakob Fugger;
6 March 1459 –30 December 1525 ), sometimes known as Jacob Fugger the Rich, was a Germanbanker and a member of theFugger family.Biography
Fugger was born on
6 March 1459 in theSwabia n town ofAugsburg in theHoly Roman Empire . He was the son of Hans Fugger, a weaver who settled there in the late 15th century. A trader like his brothers, he learneddouble-entry bookkeeping inVenice . Inheriting his father's business of trading, Fugger expanded the family enterprise to theAdriatic Sea via the port of Venice.At his death on
30 December 1525 Jacob Fugger bequeathed to his nephewAnton Fugger company assets totaling 2,032,652 guilders. [cite encyclopedia |last= |first= |author= |authorlink= |coauthors= |editor= |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Britannica |title=Anton Fugger |url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/221438/Anton-Fugger |accessyear= |accessmonth= |edition= |date= |year= |month= |publisher= |volume= |location= |id= |isbn= |doi= |pages= |quote= | accessdate=2008-08-12 ]Legacy
He was well-known throughout Europe, and used his eventual fortune to lend money to its rulers. Fugger often provided mercenary armies with monetary resources so they could wage war against one another.
Election of Charles V
Fugger provided Charles V with the money needed to bribe the seven electors to make him
Holy Roman Emperor in 1519. Charles ennobled the family and granted them sovereign rights over their lands, including that of coining their own money. Jacob also secured the right to sell papal indulgences, which increased his already vast fortune tenfold.References
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