★ This book takes "crisis" as its unique narrative thread, systematically chronicling the history of global economic, financial, fiscal, and monetary crises from the Age of Discovery in 1520 to 2021. It skillfully analyzes dozens of classic crises—such as Tulip Mania, the Great Depression, and the Subprime Mortgage Crisis—within the grand historical framework of war, plague, technological revolution, and globalization, attempting to reveal the underlying logic behind their cyclical recurrence.

★ The author, Mr. Guo Qingui, possesses an impressive multidisciplinary background: He is not only a seasoned lawyer practicing at a top-tier law firm in Beijing's Financial Street (China's core financial district), serving numerous large enterprises and financial institutions, but also holds a Master of Laws from Peking University (ranked #14 globally in the QS World University Rankings) and an EMBA from Tsinghua University. Having been a visiting scholar at Harvard University and Yale University, he combines the rigor of a legal professional, the insight of a business mind, and the macro perspective of a historian.

★ The book's core themes precisely address the widespread anxieties of today's global society: from the unsustainable burden of high debt and low interest rates faced by nations, to the widening internal wealth gap and social fragmentation, and further to the geopolitical and trade conflicts triggered by great power rivalry. It helps readers move beyond fragmented news cycles to understand the triple challenges we collectively face—"growth困境, internal division, and external competition"—from a long-term cyclical perspective, offering strong contemporary relevance.

★ We have never truly conquered crises; we have only learned to build sturdier ships between storms. The book's key insight is this: crises are not accidents but periodic phenomena deeply rooted in economic systems and human nature.

This book is a unique modern historical study focusing on "crisis," with its core being the tracing of a "crisis" undercurrent running through 500 years of globalization.

Beginning with the Age of Discovery and the rivalry between Spain and Portugal in 1520, the author reveals how the finances of early colonial empires were crippled by war and how American silver triggered a chain reaction of global monetary crises. Readers will witness the rise of the Netherlands and the burst of "Tulip Mania," the debt expansion behind Britain's Industrial Revolution, and the periodic depressions under the glow of the "Empire on which the sun never sets."

Moving into the 20th century, the analysis deepens: How did the rise of Wall Street coexist with railway bubbles? What was the deadly feedback loop between the two World Wars and the Great Depression? How did the establishment and collapse of the post-war Bretton Woods system shape the patterns of financial crises for decades to come? The narrative continues into the 21st century, analyzing the Subprime Crisis, the European Debt Crisis, and the contagion and mutation of crises amid deepening globalization.

The book is clearly structured into seven major parts: From the Age of Discovery to the First Globalization (1520-1670); From the Industrial Revolution to Imperial Zenith (1671-1900); followed by the Rise of Wall Street, War and Depression, the Cold War Era, Debt-Driven Prosperity, and finally the New Global Credit Era (2001-2021). Each section uses selected historical events and crisis cases—such as "The Fiscal Bankruptcy of Philip II," "The Great Depression of 1929," "The 1997 Asian Financial Crisis"—to illustrate the triggering logic of crises under different catalysts like war, plague, technological revolution, geopolitics, and market bubbles.

Through this梳理, the author strives to answer fundamental questions: Why do crises recur cyclically? What roles do markets and governments play during crises, and why do they repeatedly fail? How has human understanding of crises evolved—from Marx to Keynes to Modern Monetary Theory (MMT)?

Ultimately, this book attempts to offer profound reflection on future risks and opportunities for our era of uncertainty, grounded in an understanding of human nature and historical experience.

Guo Qingui

Lawyer, financial writer, and researcher in financial, economic, business, and technological history. He holds a Master of Laws from Peking University Law School (2005), an EMBA from Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management (2015), and completed the ED program at the Yale Global Leadership Program (2018). He has been a visiting scholar at Harvard University (2017) and Yale University (2019). He has practiced at several prestigious Beijing law firms including Grandall, Zhong Lun, King & Wood Mallesons, and DeHeng. He currently practices at a renowned law firm on Beijing's Financial Street and serves as an independent director for several A-share and Hong Kong-listed companies.

He has provided specialized or ongoing legal services to dozens of well-known multinational corporations, central state-owned enterprises, large financial institutions, and internet technology companies. He has served as legal counsel for several central ministries and local governments. He has acted as counsel in dozens of high-impact litigation and arbitration cases and has provided specialized legal services for over ten mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, and private placements of listed companies. His published works include Internet Finance: Business Models and Architecture, Internet Finance: Principles and Practice, Equity Design, Equity Crowdfunding, New Internet Business Models, Megamergers, and others.

Part I The Rise and Fall of Great Powers: Sails, Trade, and the Age of Discovery (1520-1670)
Chapter 1
Territory, War, and Finance
The Rivalry between Spain and Portugal and the Age of Discovery
What Conquered the New World Was Plague
The Challenge from Three Peripheral Minor Powers
The Fall of the First Empire on Which the Sun Never Set
Innovation and the Rise of the Netherlands
The Era of Plunder and Corporate Legend
Sunrise in the West, Rain in the East
Chapter 2
Bubbles, Plague, and Crisis
The Merchants of Venice and Economic Crisis
The Fiscal Crisis of Philip II
The Monetary Crisis of the Silver Empire
The Plague Within the Imperial City of the East
Tulip Mania, 1637
Eyam Village, 1666
The General Crisis of the 17th Century
Summary
Note: The Eastern and Western Worlds, 1520-1670

Part II The Decline of the Sun Never Sets: Guns, Markets, and the Industrial Revolution (1671-1900)
Part III The Great Game: Infrastructure, Civil War, and the Wall Street Empire (1901-1913)
Part IV Acts of God and Man: War, Plague, and the Great Depression (1914-1946)
Part V The Postwar Thirty Years: Cold War, Hot War, and Crisis (1946-1980)
Part VI Prosperity and Recession: Debt, New Policies, and Downturn (1981-2000)
Part VII New Era, New Crisis: Credit, Debt, and Globalization (2001-2021)