German Village Chases Berlin For 450-Year-Old Debt Potentially Worth Trillions
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Germany’s capital city, Berlin, could potentially be trillions of euros in debt, claimed a report by Reuters on Wednesday, after the village of Mittenwalde – just 30km away from Berlin’s city centre – uncovered a certificate of debt in its archives, which dated back to 1562.
Germany’s capital city, Berlin, could potentially be trillions of euros in debt, claimed a report by Reuters on Wednesday, after the village of Mittenwalde – just 30km away from Berlin’s city centre – uncovered a certificate of debt in its archives, which dated back to 1562.
According to the report, the terms of the debt slip had clearly indicated how Berlin city officials borrowed 400 guilders (the currency at that time) from Mittenwalde on May 28 1562; and had also promised to return the amount with an annual interest rate of six percent per year.
Yet, with the debt still unpaid, this sum has ballooned to 11,200 guilders, or 112 million euros ($136.79 million) – which, when adjusted for compound interest and inflation, would equate to trillions of euros.
Town historian Vera Schmidt, who was the one who found the certificate of debt, told Reuters that she was certain the slip was still valid, despite the seal missing from the document.
[quote]”In 1893 there was a debate in which the document was examined and the writing was determined to be authentic,” she noted.[/quote]The debt slip, according to Schmidt, was also last seen in 1963, before it was lost in the town’s archives. Additionally Schmidt discovered that Mittenwalde authorities had been trying to reclaim the amount from Berlin since 1820, though all previous attempts have failed.
On Wednesday, Schmidt and Pfeiffer met with Berlin’s finance senator Ulrich Nussbaum, who ceremonially handed them a historical guilder from 1539 as repayment. The guilder has since been placed in a temporary display at the Mittenwalde museum.
[quote]“This case shows that debts always catch up with you, no matter how old they are,” told Nussbaum to the Berliner Zeitung paper.[/quote]Related: Trying To Save Eurozone, Bundesbank Falls $300 Billion In Debt
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Reclaiming the full debt however would have brought significant riches to the 8,800 strong population of Mittenwalde, which had once been a seat of power in the middle ages, as evidenced by red brick fragments of medieval fortifications still dotting the town centre.
Berlin though would have no chance of meeting Mittenwalde’s demands anyway. According to a report released by the senate finance administration in June 2012, Berlin is already close to 63 million euros in the red.
