Vice is the true father of Western capitalism, according to Ian Klaus in this fascinating, wildly entertaining, and often startling history of modern finance. Rather than the noble pursuit of gentlemen, international financial affairs in the nineteenth century were conducted in large part, the...

Cover -- Contents -- Preface -- Cast of Characters -- 1. Storms in the Caribbean Sea and the Life of Lord Londonderry -- 2. The War of the Spanish Succession and the Jacobite Rebellion -- 3. The Diamond Deal -- 4. Learning by Doing: Law and Londonderry Before the Bet -- 5. The Bet of the Bubbles...