The late seventeenth century was a crucial period in English financial history. A host of joint-stock companies emerged offering the opportunity for investment in projects ranging from the manufacture of paper to the search for sunken treasure. Driven by the demands of the Nine Years' War, the state also employed innovative tactics to attract money, its most famous scheme being the incorporation of the Bank of England. This book provides a comprehensive study of the choices and actions of the investors who enthusiastically embraced London's new financial market. It highlights the interactions between public and private finance, looks at how information circulated around the market and was used by speculators and investors, and documents the establishment of the institutions - the Bank of England, the national debt and an active secondary market in that debt - on which England's financial system was built.

A history of the development of public and private investment during the formative period of English financial history.

About the Author
Anne L. Murphy is Lecturer in the Department of History, University of Exeter.

Reviews
"Murphy's book is a good starting point for anyone wishing to know more about an important and intriguing period in financial history." -Bruce G. Carruthers, American Historical Review


Awards
Joint winner of Economic History Society First Monograph Prize 2010.



Book Information
ISBN 9780521519946
Author Anne L. Murphy
Format Hardback
Page Count 298
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 570g
Dimensions(mm) 235mm * 158mm * 23mm