[belorn]

A central concept in the book Debt: The First 5000 Years is that peasants' revolts occurred when dept level becomes unsustainable. The reason why is that as debt goes up the security of the loans go down, which forces the lender to impose harsher punishment to defaulters. In turn this resulted in usury laws regulating loaning, or in other places making loaning a monopoly right of the state, the church or completely illegal.

Now days it seems that the risk of uprisings are low, and that when either whole countries or people en mass start to default, the governments simply steps in and shuffle tax money or print more in order to stabilize the economy. I don't think we actually know how far that strategy can work.

[hnick]

I enjoyed that book. I think another key point is it wasn't just uprisings, back in the day people literally fled to the hills out of the city to avoid their debts.

Not only did this lead to bands of outlaws roaming the countryside (and eventually posing a risk to the cities), it meant that cities lost a sizable part of their labour force and were unable to function as well.

Hence jubilees to let off steam and forgive all debt, welcoming people back into the cities every 7 years or so.