Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

The Day the King Defaulted pp 73–93Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Personal Finances of a King

  • Chapter
  • First Online:

Abstract

Discusses the personal finances of the King. Reviews the expenses and revenues of King Charles II during the first decade of the Restoration, with particular emphasis on his growing debts and the interest he paid. Also includes a detailed analysis of the various sources of tax revenue, and ends by contrasting with the finances and expenses of a modern-day monarch.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD   39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD   49.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Learn about institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    See Goodare (2009) for an interesting and related discussion of the Stuarts’ financial situation in Scotland and how it changed when they came to England.

  2. 2.

    Source: Chandaman (1975); also see the work by D. A. Shaw (1904).

  3. 3.

    I believe that number is a lower bound, since the Bank of England website has a calculator that estimates the number might be as high as £200 if one uses a general measure of price inflation.

  4. 4.

    Ring-a-ring o’ roses, A pockets full of posies, A-tishoo! A-tishoo! We all fall down!

  5. 5.

    See Picard (1997) for a description of everyday life in London during the 1660s, as well as the recent book by Larman (2016).

  6. 6.

    Source: National Archives website (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk), accessed January 19, 2017.

  7. 7.

    See “The Great Plague of London, 1665,” Contagion, Historical Views of Diseases & Epidemics, Harvard University.

  8. 8.

    Source: Harris (2006).

  9. 9.

    See the article by Oates and Schwab (2015) on the history and distorting impact of the window tax, as well as an interesting discussion of the definition of windows.

  10. 10.

    I guess there weren’t that many idiots in the seventeenth century; today, however …

  11. 11.

    See R. D. Richards (1929), p. 66.

  12. 12.

    Source: “Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015,” HM Treasury.

References

  • Chandaman, C. (1975). The English Public Revenue 1660–1688. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goodare, J. (2009). The Debts of James VI of Scotland. The Economic History Review, 62(4), 926–952.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harris, T. (2006). Restoration: Charles II and His Kingdoms. London: Penguin Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Larman, A. (2016). Restoration: The Year of the Great Fire. London: Head of Zeus.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oates, W. E., & Schwab, R. M. (2015). The Window Tax: A Case Study in Excess Burden. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 29(1), 163–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Picard, L. (1997). Restoration London: Everyday Life in London 1660–1670. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Richards, R. D. (1929). The Early History of Banking in England. London: P.S. King & Sons, Ltd.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shaw, W. (1904). Introduction to the Calendar of Treasury Books. London: His Majesty’s Stationary Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tinniswood, A. (2004). By Permission of Heaven: The True Story of the Great Fire of London. New York: Riverhead (Penguin).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Schulich School of Business, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    Moshe Arye Milevsky

Authors
  1. Moshe Arye Milevsky
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Moshe Arye Milevsky .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Milevsky, M.A. (2017). Personal Finances of a King. In: The Day the King Defaulted. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59987-8_4

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59987-8_4

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-59986-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-59987-8

  • eBook Packages: Economics and FinanceEconomics and Finance (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation