Economy & Finance in the 13th century

19 sourced entries, 1204 CE to 1298 CE, oldest first. Also see Economy & Finance across every century or everything else in the 13th century.

• 1204Landshut, Bavaria, is Founded.source
• 1205William of Wrotham, Lord Warden of the Stannaries, oversees a reform of English currency. In keeping with other high-ranking bureaucrats of his time, this is just one of Wrotham's many offices. He is also "keeper of ports", the forerunner of the First Lord of the Admiralty, supervisor of the mints of Canterbury and London, ward of the vacant Diocese of Bath and Wells and archdeacon of Taunton.source
• 1209In Tuscany, the banking firm known as the Gran Tavola ("Great Table") is formed; most of the partners are members of the Bonsignori family.source
• 1223September 29 – King James I of Aragon halts the minting of new coins for the next seven years in order to prevent the devaluation of the kingdom's medium of exchange.source
• 1248November 24–25 – In the middle of the night a mass on the north side of Mont Granier suddenly collapses, in one of the largest historical rock slope failures.source
• 1250The Flemish town of Douai emits the first recorded redeemable annuities in medieval Europe, confirming a trend of consolidation of local public debt started in 1218, in Rheims.source
• 1250World climate transitions from the Medieval Warm Period to the Little Ice Age.source
• 1257Henry III of England orders the production of a pure gold penny coin with a value of twenty pence. Unfortunately, the bullion value of the coins is about 20% higher than the nominal face value, leading to poor circulation, as coins are melted down by individuals for their gold content.source
• 1258The Republic of Genoa starts imposing forced loans, known as luoghi, onto its taxpayers; they are a common resource of medieval public finance.source
• 1259Lannathai, a kingdom in the north of Thailand, is founded by King Mangrai.source
• 1262The Venice Senate starts consolidating all of the Republic's outstanding debt into a single fund, later known as the Monte Vecchio. The holders of the newly created prestiti are promised a 5% annual coupon. These claims can be sold, and quickly (before 1320) give rise to the first recorded secondary market for financial assets, in Medieval Europe.source
• 1275In Ghent, the first instance is recorded of emission of life annuities by a town in the Low Countries; this event confirms a trend of consolidation of local public debt in northwestern Europe, initiated in 1218 by Reims.source
• 1276Henry of Ghent (or Henricus) becomes the last major theologian openly to consider annuities as a usurious contract. The end of the debate allows for the expansion of the budding practice of renten emission, to become a staple of public finance in northwestern Europe.source
• 1282First evidence of the existence of consolidated public debt in Bruges, confirming the expansion of use of annuities, to fund government expenditure to the Low Countries.source
• 1283The German city of Goslar starts making efforts to redeem its already issued annuities, a sure indication of financial difficulty, and maybe an early sign of the 13th century crisis.source
• 1284The Republic of Venice begins coining the ducat, a gold coin that is to become the standard of European coinage, for the following 600 years.source
• 1287The Italian city of Siena exacts a forced loan from its taxpayers for the first time, a common feature of medieval public finance.source
• 1288The Flemish city of Ghent seeks rights to start redeeming its already issued annuities. It is a clear indication of financial difficulty, and maybe an early sign of the crisis of the 13th Century.source
• 1298The foreign creditors of the Sienese Gran Tavola Bank start demanding their deposits back, thus accelerating the liquidity crisis faced by the firm.source