Table of Contents
Jakob Fugger was a major German merchant, mining entrepreneur, and banker. He was born on March 6, 1459, and he is known to be a descendant of the Fugger merchant family located in the Mixed Imperial City of Augsburg. Jakob Fugger managed to expand his family’s business in Europe.
It must be noted that Jakob Fugger started his education when he was 14 years old. He served as a cleric and made time to study the history of investment in early Asian markets. If Jakob Fugger were to be alive today, his net worth would be around $400 billion in today’s money, equivalent to 2% of the GDP of Europe at that time according to American journalist Greg Steinmetz.
Jakob Fugger became the head of the Fugger business operations after 1487 and the business had monopolistic hold on the European copper market. Jakob Fugger had an influence on European politics. He financed the rise of Maximilian I and ensured the election of the Spanish king Charles I to become Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.
It must be noted that Jakob Fugger also funded several marriages which were strategic; enabling the House of Habsburg to gain the kingdoms of Bohemia and Hungary. He funded the building of a chapel from 1509 to 1512 which became Germany’s first renaissance building.
He also founded The Fuggerei in 1521. The Fuggerei is the world’s oldest social housing complex still in use.
Jakob Fugger Cause of Death
Jakob Fugger died on December 30, 1525. Just seven weeks after his death, his wife, Sybille Arzt got married to a business partner of Jakob and converted to the Protestant faith. The company and assets of Jakob Fugger were given to his nephews Raymund and Anton Fugger. His assets were 3,000,058 guilders and liabilities amounting to 867,797 guilders resulting in a surplus of 2,132,261 guilders. Jakob Fugger was 66 years old at the time of his death and he died of natural causes.
Personal Details
Jakob Fugger was the tenth of eleven children. His parents were Jakob Fugger the Elder (1398–1469) and his wife Barbara Bäsinger (1419–1497), daughter of Münzmeister Franz Bäsinger.
Some of the brothers of Jakob Fugger were Ulrich (1441–1510) and Georg (1453–1506) and set the pace for the rise of the family’s business in Europe. Andreas and Hans, brothers of Jakob Fugger died in Venice. Other brothers of Jakob Fugger were Markus, a cleric and Peter.
Marriage
Jakob Fugger married Sybille Arzt in 1498. She was the Grand Burgheress of Augsburg and the daughter of an eminent Augsburg Grand Burgher. The marriage gave Jakob Fugger the chance to elevate to Grand Burgher of Augsburg. He bought his wife 40,000 guilders worth of jewels from the treasure of Burgundy, Jakob Fugger and Sybille Arzt had no children
Reference:
https://ericflint.fandom.com/wiki/Jacob_Fugger
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jakob_Fugger
Leave a Reply