F is for Fugger, the Ferdanic family of bankers having built an enourmous fortune by lending enormous sums both to the Kaisers of Ferdan and several Popes. Their good standing with other banking houses such as the de Medici of Firenze, or the Moccatas of Portogal, and their expedient trade in both silver and gold made them not only immensely powerful in Augsburg where they live, but also in Ferdan and across the whole world. However, their role as collector of church taxes and “indulgences”, where they effectively collected an interest of 100% on these taxes, was not received well by many preachers. Especially people like professor Martinus Lotharius now not only agitate against this usury, but also against the Pope who is paid with the indulgences themselves. This starts to cause a chism in the current church.
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