Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Guide About The History Of Taxation And Money

By Jonathan Redworth


When you look at the history of taxation and money, a form of taxation has been around since the days of ancient Egypt. At that time, the reigning Pharaoh would collect his taxes in the form of crops or other goods rather than money. A similar system of accepting goods as a tax seemed to exist in many countries throughout the world.

Claiming taxes was seen as their right by the landowners and the leaders or ruler in a country. They were responsible for deciding what was to be taxed and who had to pay it. As the majority of taxes were paid in produce it was used to maintain the army after the tax collector and ruler had their share. The tax payers got very little in return for their payments.

Individuals that could not or would not pay taxes were branded as criminals. At one point in history the penalty handed out could result in severe injury or sometime a fatality. These tactics were used to encourage other to pay their taxes. Alternatively, they could be sent to debtor prison and lose their belongings, including their home and livelihood.

Bartering goods and services were what initially led to the introduction of coins that were made from gold and silver. These precious metals became acknowledged throughout the world as having a value that could be used to purchase items. Although bartering was still acceptable in some countries, the majority developed their own monetary and tax systems.

Economies, currency and taxation all come under the control of the banks and Governments of the day. The practice of increasing taxes to fund military actions is not something new and history shows that taxes increase much more to fund a war, than they do for any other event.

Today's travelers are probably more aware of the ups and downs in the currency values, than at any time previously. Any currency can increase or decrease in value daily. It does not take an expert to know how the ups and downs affect our buying power, but it does take an expert to understand the complex history or taxation and money.

Individuals will always complain about how they are paying too many taxes, or they are being taxed on things they should not be like petrol or alcohol. When you look at the history of taxation and money the complaints are not all that different in countries around the world.




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