500 Years Of Big Cycles: The Decline

This passage discusses the typical pattern of the rise and decline of empires due to internal economic weaknesses, costly external fighting, and political conflict. The decline is gradual, but sudden when the empire can no longer pay its debts. This leads to printing new money, which devalues the currency and causes domestic hardships. When the flight of wealth gets bad enough, governments outlaw it, and political extremism arises. This conflict causes a revolution or civil war to redistribute wealth and force big changes, which can be peaceful or violent. Wars are costly and lead to tectonic shifts that realign the new world order. When the reserve currency and debt of the declining empire lose faith, it marks the end of its cycle, and a new one begins.