30 December 1525 Jakob Fugger, banker of the Habsburgs

On December 30th. 1525, one of the most important merchants and bankers of
Europe died. His name was Jakob Fugger also called the Lily or the Rich.



Family

Jakob Fugger was born on March 6th. 1459 as the tenth of eleven children to
Jakob Fugger the Elder and his wife Barbara Bäsinger.

The Fuggers already had established themselves as successful merchants in
the city of Ausburg (now Germany).

Jakob had older brothers. Inter alia Ulrich and Georg created the base for the
rise of the company in Europe. Around 1470 they founded companies in Venice
and Nuremberg, in that time important centers of trade.



Royal Links

The Fuggers gave loans to Emperor Frederick III. He granted the Fugger family
the Lily Coat of Arms.

Jakob Fugger met Archduke Maximilian of Austria (Later Holy Roman Emperor)
for the first time in 1489 at a Frankfurt Fair.

The Fuggers became one of the most important bankers of the Emperor. In 1511,
Maximilian I elevated Jakob Fugger into the nobility. He granted the banker the
title of Imperial Count.

Even the Vatican was a client of Jakob Fugger.

In 1519, Emperor Maximilian I died and his grandson, Charles V, became
Holy Roman Emperor. He was supported by .... indeed Jakob Fugger. He
payed 850.000 guilders (which was a large amount) to the Prince Electors
so that Charles could become the new Holy Roman Emperor.



Love and Marriage

In 1498, Jakob Fugger married Sybille Arzt, Grand Burgheress of Ausburg.
His marriage gave Jakob Fugger the opportunity to have a seat in the
City Council. The couple had no children.


Note

+velenjak4ever mentioned correctly on Google+ that this was long before the
Rothschild family imported their banking system.


Source pictures: Wikipedia

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