2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21
Dynasties… Many people associate this word with kings and roy alty in robes, with attributes of state power… But the article will talk about a dynasty of a different kind, maybe not so ancient, but no less powerful. We will talk about the names of the great entrepreneurs and businessmen of the era of classical capitalism. In those days, large enterprises gave the owner such power, influence and strength, which is comparable to the royal. So, the largest dynasty of oligarchs is the Morgans. Who are they, how did they deserve their fame?
Dynasties
Financial dynasties tend to be few in number. At their origin is the progenitor. That is, the founding father, a gifted businessman, is laying the foundation for the dynasty. Subsequently, it all depends on whether he was able to pass on his entrepreneurial talents to his descendants or not.
In the first case, the fortune is multiplied, but the direct descendant (son or daughter) works on the foundation that the father laid, andthen, as a rule, the potential is exhausted. Descendants keep the business rather by inertia than thanks to intelligence and talents - this is at best, at worst - they lose their fortune. They bring the corporation to such a state that it is led by a team of managers, which replaces the main great and powerful entrepreneur.
Morgans - the richest dynasty of businessmen
For most Russians, the Morgan dynasty does not evoke any memories or associations. However, in the US, this name is the most powerful financial group, whose corporations produce services and goods worth 5 times Russia's GDP.
Morgan owns about a hundred American enterprises. One of them is General Electric, an electrical engineering concern with branches in dozens of countries around the world. Together with the DuPonts, the Morgans own General Motors, an automobile manufacturer whose factories produce world-famous cars.
The article will discuss where the Morgan dynasty came from, its history, fate and tragedy. But you need to start, oddly enough, with a pirate distant past.
Progenitor
Henry Morgan in ancient times was nicknamed the Cruel, he was born in England in 1635, as a boy he fled to the Caribbean islands as a cabin boy. Over time, he organized and led his own pirate crew. His talent and courage allowed him to make daring attacks on Spanish cities and Panama.
He was very cruel, ruthless,inhumanity. Always sailed under the flag of England. After the next Panama campaign, Morgan was arrested, but the English court did not dare to try him, instead he was sent back, and given him the rank of lieutenant governor of Jamaica.
Today there is no evidence that it was from the Cruel Pirate that the history of the Morgan family began. But a legend is a legend! Among other things, there is something in common between Morgan the pirate and John Morgan, the greatest entrepreneur. Therefore, the version of their relationship can be considered true, if not in terms of genealogy, then in a figurative sense, for sure.
Founder of the dynasty
According to official sources, Junius Morgan became the founder of the Morgan dynasty. He was a decent man and gentleman, brought up in a strict spirit of Protestantism. His painstaking work became the foundation for the empire, which was headed by his son. Junius Morgan (1813-1890), being the son of a merchant, thanks to his intelligence and talents, became a partner of the well-known merchant and entrepreneur of the time - George Peabody - in a company that helped to carry out British investments in the US economy. In 1864, when Peabody retired, Junius Morgan became the sole owner of the company.
Continue and multiply, or John Morgan
John Morgan (son of Junius) has become a symbol of the era of the formation of monopolies. His enterprise stood out for its gigantism. He was an educated, strong-willed and intelligent person.
As a child, he was a very sickly and weak boy, suffered from lupus, whichdisfigured his face. He alth problems have shaped his ability to overcome difficulties and obstacles.
He received an excellent education - he graduated from the University of Giettingen. At 23, he headed the New York branch of his father's firm (Junius Morgan).
In 1861, John Pierrepoint Morgan founded J. P. Morgan & Co. This company originally acted as an American office for the distribution and sale of European securities, the guarantor was the father's firm, which was located in London.
At the same time, the American Civil War begins. Morgana's son and father organize military supplies. Their profits are rising, and the victory over the Confederation allowed to cross out and forget all the dark affairs of the company.
In 1870, the Franco-Prussian War begins in Europe. Father and son finance the French government on fairly favorable terms. But in 1871, France was defeated. And the Morgan company, taking advantage of the situation, absorbs the French financial company Drexel, Harjes & Co, which is renamed Morgan, Harjes & Co.
In 1891, after the death of Junius, John takes over the family business. He carries out the merger of Thomson-Houston Electric Company and Edison General Electric. The newly formed trust is named General Electric.
In 1895, during the financial and economic crisis in the United States, John Morgan contributes 62 million dollars to the budget, thereby stabilizing the dollar, and receiving quite favorable privileges from the state.
1901 is the peakfinancial and industrial association "in Morgan style". John Morgan repeats exactly the history of General Electric and forms the steel trust US Steel, which became the first company in the United States with a turnover of more than a billion dollars. When creating this trust, Morgan took the business away from Andrew Carnegie, who was considered the steel king in the USA.
In the same year, Morgan founds monopoly companies:
- International Harvester is a monopoly in the production of agricultural machinery and implements.
- International Merchant Marine is a shipping monopoly, one of whose firms built the Titanic.
In 1912, the US government decided to "squeeze" John Morgan's business. He was summoned to Congress for a commission, where they began to question him about the activities of his monopolies. He proudly told congressmen: “Money is not the main thing, the main thing in business is character. If I do not trust a person, then he will never see money from me. Shortly thereafter, he dies while traveling to Rome, leaving his life's work to his son.
The personal tragedy of John Morgan
In his younger years, John Morgan experienced a terrible personal tragedy that affected his life and he alth.
In business he was very successful, but in his personal life he was deeply unhappy. Most likely, he was doing business with such dedication in order to forget and less often think about his dead wife.
Some time later he married a second time to Frances Louise Tracy. She bore him four children: three daughters and a son. But John was not drawn to home, he loaded himself with work andI was very rarely at home.
There were legends about him, it was said that he could stay awake for several days in a row. He never forgot about anything, he personally controlled the fulfillment of all his tasks and assignments, he was never late, he never lost sight of anything. He was ruthless to himself and to his subordinates. It was said that no one could withstand his gaze, as if he saw through a person, penetrated into the very depths of consciousness.
Heir
Jack Morgan Jr., unfortunately, was not remembered for anything special. The era of monopolies that produced Morgan, Rockefeller, Ford and other great entrepreneurs is gone. After the death of his father in 1913, Jack leads the company. He participates in the financing of the anti-German coalition, provides huge loans to Russia and France, places military orders.
At the same time, the construction of the headquarters on Wall Street begins. But in 1920, the anarchist Buda Mario blows up the office building: there were more than 200 injured and 30 dead.
In 1935, legislation changed in the United States, and Morgan Jr. was forced to split J. P. Morgan & Co. It was the first high-profile forced partition of an American corporation in the 20th century. This did not deal a strong blow to the power of the Morgan dynasty, but they turned from kings into mere oligarchs.
Morgans today
Do Morgans exist today? Not capital and financial resources, but people? And if they exist, what role do they play in the empire,have they retained their power and power, or, having given the name to a large financial and industrial trust, have they faded into oblivion?
John Morgan - the founder of the dynasty - was known to millions of people. There were legends about his unbridled character, habits, cruelty, arrogance. That is, he was known as a specific person. He was even given the nickname Corsair for his character and disposition.
And what about his descendants? There are names that are not perceived as the names of specific people. The name Morgan falls into this category. Today, few people are familiar with members of this family, but at the same time, many are well aware of the role they play in the political and economic life of the United States. It should be noted that photos of the Morgan family are indeed extremely rarely published in the press. Their faces do not appear on TV screens, they do not give interviews for financial magazines.
What is the reason for such facelessness of the current members of the Morgan dynasty?
When John Morgan died, the fortune passed to Jack, his son. He was the epitome of mediocrity. If Morgan Sr. had the qualities for which he was nicknamed a pirate nickname, and his name did not leave the pages of newspapers and magazines, then practically no one knew the name of his son. His main quality was the lack of individuality. And when he died in 1943, obituaries were unable to say anything about the deceased, except for the astronomical figures of his fortune, which, by the way, are also associated with his father's entrepreneurial talents. When Morgan Jr. headed the dynasty, the actual head of the enterprise was Thomas Lamont, whom the Corsair assigned to his son, knowing abouthis mediocrity.
Currently, representatives of the third and fourth generations of the family are in charge of the business. Very rarely in the section "Gossip" you can see images of the heirs of the Morgan dynasty. Photo reader can see below.
Who runs the business these days?
The Morgans are a dynasty of the largest oligarchs. But nowadays everyone owns the business… and no one. The Morgans hold in their hands the vast capital of their empire. That is why everyone is in business. No one, because none of the members of the modern Morgan dynasty has the power that the Corsair was endowed with.
The complex financial ties that are characteristic of modern monopolies, and the facelessness of the modern descendants of Morgan Sr. have led to the fact that none of them claims to be the sole owner and is not able to fulfill it.
Despite this, the descendants of the old Morgan still play a prominent role in the world of American business. They occupy prominent positions in the structure of big business. But are they the owners of the business that bears their family name? Opinions differ on this point. In American economic literature, one can often find the judgment that the Morgans are no longer the same, that is, the surname remains, but influence does not.
Actually, the theory of the “management revolution” is very fashionable in America right now. That is, the owners of the business are not owners at all, but only very rich people living off dividends, and the real power has passed into the hands of managers who actually manageenterprises and corporations and serve not so much their owners as shareholders. This is the so-called “democratization of capital.”
Instead of a conclusion
People who bear the name Morgan today are part of one of the richest families in the world, but at the same time, there is an increasing opinion that they are ordinary, mediocre, lacking business acumen and leadership abilities. They are unable to manage their gigantic business, which is a complex web that has entangled dozens of countries around the world, hundreds of insurance companies and banks, industries and industries.
Morgans are a symbol of modern capitalism. Their name will forever remain in the history of mankind, it is immortalized not only in the name of their corporation, but also in literature. American economist Lewis Corey is the author of The Morgans. Dynasties of the Biggest Oligarchs,” Morgan’s first biography.
He in his literary work tells the story of the formation of the financial and industrial empire of the Morgans since colonial times. In the book, the author gives examples of the banker's clashes with competitors, he talks about the methods, sometimes pirated, by which Morgan achieved his financial power. He tells about the history of the dynasty, about the character of John Morgan, who led the House of Morgan to power and leadership, and thanks to which the term "morganization" appeared.
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