The Richest King in History Declared Bankruptcy Four Times

Описание: Philip II of Spain ruled the richest empire the world had ever seen.

Silver from Potosí. Gold from Mexico and Peru. Sugar from the Caribbean. Trade from Asia. Territories across Europe, the Americas, Africa, and the Pacific. An empire so vast the sun never set on it — decades before Britain would use the phrase.

And yet Philip II declared bankruptcy four times.

In this video, we explain how the richest king in history managed to go broke, and why Spain’s overwhelming wealth actually accelerated its decline.

We break down:

How Philip inherited massive debts from Charles V

Why American silver didn’t make Spain solvent

How borrowing against future silver created a debt spiral

Why inflation destroyed Spain’s real revenues

How Genoese bankers profited from Spain’s repeated defaults

Why Spain paid 14–18% interest while rivals paid 4–5%

How unlimited ambition overwhelmed fiscal reality

And how Philip’s policies began Spain’s long imperial decline

This is not just a story about Spain.
It’s a lesson about cash flow vs assets, wealth vs solvency, and why even unlimited resources can’t sustain unlimited spending.

Philip II owned half the world — but he couldn’t manage the balance sheet.


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#historyoffinance #empire #inflation #hiddenhistory #moneyandpower