In The <strong>Ascent of Money</strong>, Niall Ferguson shows that finance has been the foundation of human progress, revealing financial history as the essenti... » 

In The Ascent of Money, Niall Ferguson shows that finance has been the foundation of human progress, revealing financial history as the essential back-story behind all history. The evolution of credit and debt was as important as any technological innovation in the rise of civilization, from ancient Babylon to the silver mines of Bolivia.

With the clarity and energy for which he is famed, Ferguson explains why the origins of the French Revolution lie in a stock market bubble caused by a convicted Scots murderer - and how a financial revolution is propelling the world's most populous country from poverty to power in a single generation.

'Vibrant and approachable' - The Times

'Told with verve and insight ... If we want money to serve us in the future it is as well to attend to the ways it has served us in the past' - Telegraph «