19 - The Greatest Showman: MacGregor's South American Mania

Footnotes of History

Want more FOH? Visit footnotesofhistory.com/join Get the shownotes at footnotesofhistory.com/19 In the 1820s, the capital markets of Britain surged on the ramping price of South American bonds. As the Spanish Empire was beaten back, new countries were popping up all over the map. Governments in Columbia, Venezuela and Bolivia all sent word to London for loans to start their new nations and suddenly boasting the prospects of a very healthy ROI. Among these nations was Poyais – freed from the yoke of Spain in the early 1810s and gifted by the Mosquito King to one Brigadier-General Sir Gregor MacGregor of the 57th Regiment of Foot and Knight of the Portuguese Order of Christ. MacGregor, the now “Cazique” of Poyais, arrived in Britain to consult on his nation’s prospects and to encourage emigration of pioneering individuals to its shores. Spoiler alert: almost nothing about Poyais was true - as MacGregor’s hapless confidants (both financial and colonial) found out to their cost.