A rich and lively survey of the great families who rule industry by the acclaimed author of The Wealth and Poverty of Nations

Through perseverance, solid ingenuity, and unwavering determination, family-run companies dynastieshave dominated wealth and business throughout the last two centuries. One third of Fortune 500 firms are family owned and, in most cases, the ideal of the family business is one synonymous with continuity, watchful leadership, and dedication to success. But what happens when bad behavior, extravagance, and lazinessall very real enemies of industryare allowed to proliferate?

In Dynasties, bestselling author and historian David S. Landes scrutinizes the powerful family businesses that rule both the financial and industrial sectors across Europe, Japan, and America to determine what factors can cause a dynasty to flourish or fail. Focusing on three areasbanking, automobiles, and raw materialshis cast of characters speaks to the power of the family enterprise: Ford, Rothschild, Morgan, Guggenheim, Rockefeller, and Toyoda are but a few whose histories contain all the drama and passion expected when exorbitant money, power, and kinship intersect. Drawing on his immense knowledge of economic history, Landes offers a new reading of the dynastic business plan of the last two centurieswith surprising recommendations for the coming one.