An Evolution of Trade Currency from the Dutch to British to Yankeedom’s Rise and Fall

This is an extraordinary article about the evolution of reserve currencies all the way back to 1250 CE in Europe. It traces the evolution of the Dutch trade currencies, then the British and finally the Yankees. It argues that both China and Russia have been far more careful in announcing they are going off the dollar because they have learned what happens to leaders who do this in a more flamboyant way (Gaddafi).