Lending to the Borrower from Hell: Debt, Taxes, and Default in the Age of Philip IIWhat the loans and defaults of a sixteenth century Spanish king can tell us about sovereign debt today Why do lenders time and again loan money to sovereign borrowers who promptly go bankrupt? When can this type of lending work? As the United States and many European nations struggle with mountains of debt, historical precedents can offer valuable insights. Lending to the Borrower from Hell looks at one famous case the debts and defaults of Philip II