This course will introduce students to the financial history of the western world, including Europe and the United States. Students will gain an understanding of how modern financial practices and institutions such as futures markets, double-entry accounting, credit markets, and joint stock companies first emerged in the late medieval period. We will then follow the expansion and increasing sophistication of these practices with the advent of capitalism and the rise of English trade and manufacturing. Readings will focus on classics in the field, with lectures covering the essential themes and chronology of the course. This course will be of interest to students pursuing a career in finance, technology, or academia.