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Fiscal Crisis and the Decline of Spain (Castile)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 March 2009
Abstract
Earl J. Hamilton's multiple theses on the price revolution, the decline of Spain, and the birth of capitalism have all placed American silver (and gold) at the forefront. This essay supports Hamilton's emphasis on the impact of New World treasure on the decline of Castile, but from a different angle. Mining profits rather than the quantity of imports supported the empire. When the profits dwindled, as was inevitable, international superiority was begrudgingly surrendered to the emerging powers of the north.
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- Papers Presented at the Forty-First Annual Meeting of the Economic History Association
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- Copyright © The Economic History Association 1982
References
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