Trump’s War on the Fed… and the Medieval King Who Tried to Tame the World’s First Bankers
The Modern Mystery
Something seismic rumbled through the foundations of American power this week, a tremor that would have felt disturbingly familiar to a paranoid English king 800 years ago. As the nation wrestled with inflation and an uncertain economic future, President Trump launched a direct assault on the one institution designed to be immune to political whim: the Federal Reserve. His target? Fed Governor Lisa Cook. His threat? Resign, or be fired.
This wasn’t just a political spat. It was a declaration of war on institutional independence, a move to subordinate the nation’s economic stability to the will of one man. The pretext was a series of allegations about Cook’s past mortgage applications, a convenient legal crowbar to pry open the Fed’s fortified independence. But the true goal was clear: to purge the Fed of anyone not loyal to the President’s agenda of lower interest rates, regardless of the inflationary consequences. It’s a high-stakes gamble that echoes through history with a chilling warning, a story of a desperate king, a powerful, independent financial order, and the catastrophic consequences of trying to bend economic reality to political will.
The Time Portal
Let’s wind the clock back 800 years, to the damp, stone halls of 13th-century England. Our protagonist is King John, a man forever branded by history as “Lackland” and one of England’s worst monarchs. John was a tempest of insecurity, paranoia, and breathtaking incompetence. He was a king who snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, who alienated his allies and emboldened his enemies. And he was a king who was perpetually, desperately, broke.
But John had a secret weapon: the Knights Templar. This was not just a band of crusading warrior-monks. The Templars had, by the 13th century, evolved into the world’s first multinational corporation and international banking system. From their London headquarters at the New Temple – a sprawling complex of church, cloisters, and fortified vaults – they managed a financial empire that stretched across Christendom. They could transfer funds across borders with a simple ciphered note, they held the crown jewels of European monarchs in their vaults, and they provided loans to kings and popes alike. And most importantly, they were independent. They answered not to King John, but to the Pope in Rome. For a king as distrusted and unstable as John, the Templars were the only institution he could turn to, the only bankers who couldn’t be swayed by his enemies. They were his financial lifeline, and he both needed and resented them for it.
The Parallel Revelation
The parallels between Trump’s assault on the Fed and King John’s fraught relationship with the Templars are as striking as they are terrifying. Both leaders, facing immense political and economic pressure, sought to control the independent financial institutions of their day. Trump, like John, sees the Fed not as an independent arbiter of economic stability, but as a tool to be wielded for his own political ends. He wants lower interest rates to fuel a short-term economic boom, just as John wanted endless funds to finance his disastrous wars in France.
Both men used legalistic pretexts to attack their financial guardians. Trump is using allegations of mortgage fraud against Governor Cook, a convenient excuse to remove a dissenting voice. John, in his endless disputes with the Church and his own barons, constantly sought legal loopholes and justifications to seize funds and pressure his opponents. The core of the conflict is the same: a political leader who believes his will should be absolute, clashing with an institution designed to be independent and guided by its own rules and principles.
And just as Trump’s actions send shockwaves through the global financial system, so too did John’s instability threaten the economic fabric of his time. The Templars, for all their power, were forced to walk a tightrope. They were loyal to the crown, but their ultimate loyalty was to their own order and to the Pope. They had to manage the king’s finances, fund his wars, and even act as his diplomats, all while knowing that his erratic behavior could bring the entire kingdom crashing down. It was a dangerous game, one that put the Templars at the very center of the struggle for England’s soul.
The Pattern Recognition
Why does this pattern repeat? Why do powerful leaders, separated by eight centuries, resort to the same tactics against the guardians of their economies? The answer lies in a fundamental, timeless conflict: the clash between short-term political ambition and long-term economic stability. Leaders like Trump and King John are driven by the immediate needs of their political survival. They want results now, and they see independent institutions like the Fed or the Templars as obstacles to their will. They are not interested in the long-term consequences of their actions, only in the immediate gratification of their desires.
Independent financial institutions, on the other hand, are designed to take the long view. They are meant to be the sober, rational voice in the room, the ones who say “no” when the politicians demand more, more, more. They are the guardians of the currency, the bulwarks against inflation, the stewards of economic stability. And for that very reason, they are a constant source of frustration to autocratic leaders who want nothing to stand in their way.
This is not a story about left versus right, or Republican versus Democrat. It is a story about the eternal struggle between power and principle, between the temptations of autocracy and the discipline of democracy. It is a story that has played out time and time again, in civilizations across the globe, and the ending is always the same.
The Ancient Warning
King John’s story did not end well. His attempts to control the Templars, the Church, and his own barons led to disaster. He was forced to sign the Magna Carta at Runnymede in 1215, a humiliating capitulation that enshrined the principle that even the king was not above the law. His wars in France ended in catastrophic failure, and he died in 1216, a broken and defeated man, his kingdom in turmoil.
The Templars, for their part, survived John, but their close association with the unpopular king tarnished their reputation. And just over a century later, they too would fall, destroyed by another king, Philip IV of France, who coveted their wealth and power. The lesson of history is clear: when political leaders try to destroy the institutions that hold them in check, they often end up destroying themselves.
5 Things Readers Can Do This Week
History is not just a story. It is a warning. The events of the past week are a stark reminder that the institutions that protect our freedoms and our prosperity are fragile and must be defended. Here are five things you can do this week to better prepare for the echoes of history that are reverberating through our world:
1. Diversify Your Assets: Just as the Templars spread their wealth across multiple countries, you should diversify your investments. Don’t keep all your eggs in one basket. Learn more about building a resilient financial portfolio at [Self-Reliance Report](https://selfreliancereport.com).
2. Secure Your Food Supply: In times of economic instability, the food supply chain can be vulnerable. Learn how to grow your own food and become more self-sufficient with the [4ft Farm Blueprint](https://4ftfarmblueprint.com/).
3. Build a Strong Community: When institutions fail, communities are what hold us together. Get to know your neighbors, build local networks, and learn the skills of mutual aid and support. [Homesteader Depot](https://homesteaderdepot.com) has great resources for building resilient communities.
4. Protect Your Health: Economic stress can take a toll on your physical and mental health. Learn about natural and holistic ways to stay healthy and resilient at [Freedom Health Daily](https://freedomhealthdaily.com) and [Seven Holistics](https://sevenholistics.com).
5. Stay Informed: Don’t rely on the mainstream media for your information. Seek out independent sources of news and analysis, and learn to think critically about the world around you. [AmericanDownfall.com](https://americandownfall.com) is a great place to start.
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Sources:
* [The Financial Relations of the Knights Templars to the English Crown](https://www.jstor.org/stable/1832571)
* [King John and the Templars: Strange Times, Strange Partners](https://www.medievalists.net/2023/11/king-john-templars/)
* [King John and the Templar master](https://thetemplarknight.com/2010/11/05/king-john-and-the-templar-master/)
* [Trump Threatens to Fire Fed Governor, Escalating Pressure on Central Bank](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/22/us/politics/trump-lisa-cook-federal-reserve-governor.html)
