Merchant Families, Banking and Money in Medieval Lucca

Thomas W. Blomquist is Emeritus Professor of History at Northern Illinois University, USA.

'Written with precision and lucidity, [the 16 essays] take us straight to the heart of important issues in the history of thirteenth-century Lucca. The essays are based upon a thorough and enviable knowledge of the city's notarial archives... These essays have had a real impact upon current understanding of thirteenth-century Tuscany and it is a boon to have them collected. Taken together they represent a considerable achievement.' Economic History Review

• Contents: Preface; Acknowledgements; Merchant Families, Trade and Government: The Castracani family of thirteenth-century Lucca; Lineage, land and business, in the thirteenth century: the Guidiccioni family of Lucca; Lineage, land and business, in the thirteenth century: the Guidiccioni family of Lucca; La famiglia e gli affari: le compagnie internazionali lucchesi al tempo di Castruccio Castracani; City and country in medieval Tuscany: the Ricciardi family and rural investment in thirteenth-century Lucca; The drapers of Lucca and the marketing of cloth in the mid-thirteenth century; The first consuls at Lucca: 10 July 1119. Banking: Commercial association in thirteenth-century Lucca; The dawn of banking in an Italian commune: thirteenth century Lucca; The early history of European banking: merchants, bankers and Lombards of thirteenth-century Lucca in the county of Champagne; Some observations on early foreign exchange banking based upon new evidence from thirteenth-century Lucca; Administration of a thirteenth-century mercantile-banking partnership: an episode in the history of the Ricciardi of Lucca; De Roover on business, banking and economic thought. Money: Alle origini del 'Grosso' Toscano: la testimonianza delle fonti del XII secolo; The second issuance of a Tuscan gold coin: the gold groat of Lucca, 1256; Alien coins and foreign exchange banking in a medieval commune: thirteenth-century Lucca; Index.