Black Corporation: Joseon

Chapter 853

Episode 853: Their Ambition (4)

In the history before the intervention of Fragrance, the person who played the biggest role in the downfall of the Medici family was Edward IV.

Or, to be more precise, it was Edward IV who cut off the Medici family, which was struggling to breathe as the end approached.

Lorenzo de’ Medici was competent in diplomacy and politics, but incompetent in running the bank, which was the core of the family.

Thanks to this, the 16 branches inherited by his great-grandfather went bankrupt one after another, leading to the downfall of the Medici family.

Among these bank failures, the one linked to Edward IV was the failure of the London branch in 1472.

* * *

The biggest source of income for Florence and other Italian city-states was the woolen textile business.

To make the famous Italian woolen fabrics, high-quality wool was needed, and the biggest supplier of this wool was England.

England had already made great efforts to foster the woolen textile industry since the reign of Edward III.

Not only did they scout out woolen craftsmen from Italy and the Benelux region and settle them in England, but they also placed restrictions on the import of woolen fabrics.

They blocked the import of low-priced products and placed restrictions on the quantity of high-priced products first.

Thanks to these policies, England’s woolen textile industry grew significantly.

But where there is light, there is darkness.

As the woolen industry within England grew, the amount of wool coming into Italy decreased significantly.

To solve this problem, wool from Spain and other countries was used as a substitute, but the quality was not as good as the wool exported from England.

In the end, at a meeting to import wool from England, Edward IV requested a large loan.

Lorenzo’s Medici family had no choice but to weep and approve this loan.

And Edward IV took advantage of this loan, and the London branch of the Medici bank went bankrupt.

The reason Edward IV was able to do this was because the Medici family was not the old Medici bank.

The enormous financial and political power of Cosimo de’ Medici’s time had long since disappeared, so Edward IV took it away without any worries.

* * *

However, as history changed due to Fragrance’s intervention, the relationship between the Medici family and England also changed significantly.

First of all, Cosimo and Giovanni had lived for a long time, and there was a proper division of work between Lorenzo and Giovanni.

In the beginning, Giovanni was evaluated as general-purpose, but he was definitely more capable than Lorenzo. In addition, the track record and experience he had accumulated traveling between the Empire and Italy over time made him not just a merchant, but a worn-out snake.

The Medici Bank also became stronger as it returned more profits than Cosimo spent.

Thanks to this, European monarchs, including Edward IV, still had no choice but to pay attention to the Medici.

In addition, the market situation that changed due to the intervention of the county caused difficulties for England and Edward IV.

The scent wasn’t intentional, but it was the result of the butterfly effect.

* * *

Thanks to the rich flavor of MSG, Sejong and Joseon opened their doors early.

And following Joseon’s lead, other Asian countries, including the Ming and Japanese countries, began opening their doors one by one.

At first, trade was all about importing and selling Eastern civilization, starting with items from Joseon, which was symbolized as the ‘land of flowers’.

But a merchant was a merchant.

“There are limits to just importing and selling items from the ‘Land of Flowers’ or the East. “We have to have something to sell.”

In order to gain more profits, European merchants tried to export European products to the East.

However, European merchants who attempted to enter the Eastern markets suffered failure.

“I forgot why Oriental goods were so popular in Europe…”

The merchants couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

The reason why products from the East, including Joseon, were able to become popular in Europe was not simply because they were ‘wonderful items from a distant, foreign country.’

This was because it had far superior quality and beauty compared to European objects used for similar purposes.

And what was at the peak was the post-Joseon empire called the ‘Land of Flowers.’

Therefore, although they were able to make some profits in many underdeveloped Southeast Asian countries, they had no choice but to suffer losses in Northeast Asia, especially in the Empire and Ming, which were the largest markets.

To be precise, merchants did not suffer a deficit, but European countries had no choice but to suffer a national deficit.

In order to escape the one-sided trade relationship, European merchants did their best to tap the markets of the Empire and Ming Dynasty.

In the process, woolen fabrics and expensive lace emerged as influential products.

Wool textiles exported from Europe, especially Italy, attracted the attention of imperial fashionistas.

The Jurchen tribe in the northern part of the empire and the nomads of Mongolia also produced woolen fabrics. But the European ones were of better quality than those. In addition, because the quality of dyeing was superior to that of Northern China or Mongolia, European woolen fabrics began to be used for winter clothing for the people of the empire.

As woolen fabrics began to be sold throughout the empire, Italian merchants, including Medici, began to focus on exporting woolen fabrics.

“The winter of the Empire is famous for its harshness! “It can sell well!”

However, contrary to expectations, sales of woolen fabrics were sluggish.

While Italian woolen fabrics were lagging, French lace was becoming popular among upper-class women of the Empire and Ming.

The person who was most stimulated by this was Giovanni. One of the main industries of the Medici family was woolen textiles. The pride in woolen fabrics was also high.

“Let’s find out why people in the ‘Land of Flowers’ are reluctant to wear woolen fabrics!”

“yes!”

The results obtained through our own market research were as follows.

-It has good warmth and elasticity, but is too heavy and stiff.

“Heavy and stiff?”

After receiving the report, Giovanni examined the cloth made by the imperialists and the Ming Dynasty. Giovanni nodded as he searched for silk and cotton linens by price range.

“I see…”

In the case of silk and cotton fabrics preferred by imperial people, the more expensive they were, the softer and lighter they were. This was the same in Ming Dynasty and Japan.

On the other hand, Italian wool fabric was heavy and stiff compared to this.

When Giovanni learned of the problem, he began looking for wool from Europe and the Middle East to find a solution.

Through the investigation, Spain’s adoptive mother emerged as a strong candidate.

Wool from the Merino breed of sheep had a quality comparable to that from England.

There was an advantage that the English product did not have.

The wool was very thin.

Accordingly, Giovanni turned his purchasing focus to Spain.

The production of wool fabrics from Spanish wool initially suffered from an extremely high defect rate.

This was due to craftsmen who were familiar with English wool and looms tailored to the characteristics of English wool.

However, as artisans became familiar with Spanish wool and improved looms, cotton fabrics that could be sold in the Northeast Asian market began to appear.

And as time passed, woolen fabrics that were as soft and light as silk, preferred by the people of the Empire and the Ming Dynasty, came out, and Florentine woolen fabrics became popular in the Empire and Ming Dynasty.

In addition, a new trend among the European upper class also played a role.

As the ‘imperial style’ became popular, upper-class European women had to wear empire-style dresses to avoid being ostracized.

To make empire-style clothes, the answer was to make them with cloth from the empire, but making them from top to bottom with cloth from the empire was too expensive. However, the new woolen fabrics from Florence were as close as possible to the characteristics of imperial cloth and were reasonably priced.

Thanks to this, Florentine woolen fabrics became popular in European high society.

As time passed, stories about Spanish wool and wool fabrics made using it began to circulate among Florence’s rival cities and competitors, and Spanish wool gradually began to displace English wool.

This change made things difficult for England and Edward IV.

Although the scent was not intended.

* * *

“I don’t really like delivering a large amount of silver to Edward of London. However, it is unavoidable to prevent France from going too far ahead. Tsk!”

Cosimo clicked his tongue. Edward IV of England was never a good customer. However, he was a necessary figure to control France.

It was France, an ally of Florence along with the Ottoman Portuguese. But France was a European power.

France was the country with the largest population and most fertile land in Europe.

In addition, France had recently become even larger by annexing the Duchy of Burgundy.

France was the powerhouse that would dominate the political situation in Europe as long as it escaped the aftereffects of the ‘Hundred Years’ War’.

“If we cannot stop France’s monopoly, our family will be reduced to the French king’s purse. “This must be stopped.”

Giovanni and Lorenzo both nodded at Cosimo’s words.

Although the Alps were blocking the attack, France could attack Florence at any time if it wanted to.

The Medici family lending money to the French king and nobles had a business aspect, but it was also a way to ensure the safety of the city.

If France were to dominate as Cosimo feared, the French king would turn into an insincere trader. Nevertheless, it was clear that the Medici family would have to continue lending to the French king as much as the French king wanted.

Otherwise, the King of France would not only use up the loan borrowed from the Medici family, but would also mobilize his troops to attack Florence and plunder it.

Of course, the attack on Florence could be seen as the worst case scenario. However, it was clear that the Suez Railway’s share structure would change immediately. The stakes of the Ottomans and the Empire would be difficult to control, but Portugal and Florence were sure to suffer great losses.

Therefore, Cosimo planned to steal secret information from France and leak it to neighboring countries.

And England was chosen as the first target.

“Lorenzo.”

“yes.”

“What do you think will happen if we don’t reveal the secrets of the fortune?”

Lorenzo answered Cosimo’s question without hesitation.

“Even if we don’t shed it, they will either develop it themselves or steal it. But it will be much later. And France will be ahead of its time. France, so far ahead, will be the first to fight England again.”

“why?”

“Because of Calais.”

Cosimo nodded at Lorenzo’s answer and looked at Giovanni.

“Do you feel the same way?”

Giovanni nodded his head in response to Cosimo’s question.

“That’s right. Calais will become the spark of war. And we will have to spend money unnecessarily. A lot of that too.”