The life and times of Sir Thomas Gresham Author:John William Burgon Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: THE BURSE AT ANTWERP. CHAPTER II. [1551 To 1553.] . Office Of Royal Agent—Gresham's Appointment, And ReMoval To Antwerp—Some Account Of That City—T... more »ransacTions With The Fuggers And Schetz—Gresham's DissatisFaction—His Financial Schemes—The Duke Of Northum- Rland His Patron—He Negotiates With The Ambassador Of Charles V.—His Prosperity. HE office of Royal Agent, or as it was sometimes called King's Merchant, or Factor, was of very early origin. It naturally arose out of the exigencies of an imperfectly organized system of finance ; which, when the country was threatened with OFFICE OF ROYAL AGENT. 55 war, or some other source of heavy expenditure, recognised but two modes of replenishing the coffers of an impoverished treasury; viz. to levy subsidies by an unjustifiable stretch of arbitrary power,—or to induce wealthy merchants, under sufficient security, to advance the sums required. The former of these methods, which in remote times was doubtless had recourse to in the majority of instances, and with most success, was too convenient ever to be totally relinquished :" but as the commercial wealth of Europe increased, the practice of obtaining loans from the opulent merchants settled in Germany and the Low Countries became more and more prevalent; until it was finally found expedient, on the part of government, to employ an agent for the express purpose of negotiating them. This was always some one of high ability, influence, and integrity, whose province it was, in addition to the immediate duties of his office, to supply the state with whatever was required of foreign production. It was also expected of this servant of the crown, that he should keep the privy-council informed of whatever was passing abroad; and Among the State Papers of Queen Mary's reig...« less