The robber barons and monopoly capitalism

The origins of US imperialism in Latin America

      There is a most interesting book that describes the concentration of capital and the development of monopoly capitalism during the second half of the nineteenth century in the United States.  Originally published in 1934, The Robber Barons, The Great American Capitalists, 1861-1901, tells the story of a small group of men who emerged to become a new U.S. ruling class.  It was written by Matthew Josephson, a U.S. journalist who contributed regularly to The New Republic, The New Yorker, and The Nation.  Considered a classic, The Robber Barons was reissued in 2011.

     The names of the robber barons are well known.  They include Andrew Carnegie, whose empire was built on steel; John Rockefeller, an oil magnate who with ruthless methods forged new structures of concentrated capital; and J. P. Morgan, the banker who established integration of industry and banking.  Most, with the notable exception of Morgan, the son of a banker, grew up in poverty.  They were disciplined and controll…