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AdamantiumBalls t1_j0xlgbh wrote

Reply to comment by Sugarysam in King Charles III bank note designs revealed by Bank of England by elizabeth-cooper

These people were made from generations ago , must be nice

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NATIK001 t1_j0ydr5e wrote

Sadly doesn't always last.

A few generations back my family was loaded, but at this point the money has all been thrown away on lavish lifestyles and failed business ventures. None left for my generation except stories and some distant relations to nobility, the titles themselves have been lost too due to marrying outside nobility (not that I disapprove of that in any way).

I think my grandfather was the last to be a proper millionaire, my parents generation even lost the last of the old family estates.

But that is life, would have been nice to be financially secure from birth but can't win everything. I do have friends from wealthy families though, which gives some view into that life and money causes some shitty power issues in family relations. The old patriarchs and matriarchs get to be colossal shitheads, because no one dares to challenge them and lose access to the money stacks, can get real dysfunctional. My grandfather definitely used his money to try and control his kids, by giving them cash, loans or real estate if they followed his wishes and withholding it if they didn't.

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nim_opet t1_j0ymxwg wrote

You are extraordinary unlucky. Wealth is much more sticky than poverty - out of 400 wealthiest families in Florence, something like 350 were the wealthiest families in the city records in the 15th century.

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NATIK001 t1_j0ynwwi wrote

Yeah I know it's not the usual outcome.

However one also has to consider that that stat refers to the main line of the family usually. Families tend to fracture over time. Either the heads of the family choose the main line or aristocratic laws did. Either way some descendants drift away over time from the main wealth pool.

But yeah, money tends to breed money. If it isn't managed by morons a sufficient amount will sustain itself, but failing enough business ventures can waste an unbelievable amount of funds.

For my family it's a mix of both, but primarily the last one.

In Europe it's not that uncommon to hear about old mansions, castles and estates in disrepair or for sale, because the old aristocratic families can't afford the upkeep anymore.

Often the lesser nobility ended up being nothing but farmers with oversized egos, and the spending habits of small kings. The industrial revolution left a lot of those behind in the dirt.

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