Georg Fugger

Georg Fugger von der Lilie was a German merchant of the Fugger dynasty. A son of Jakob Fugger the Elder and his wife Barbara (whose sons also included Ulrich and Jakob the Younger), Georg was born and died in Augsburg; it became clear early in life that he would become a merchant. The "Ulrich Fugger und seine Gesellschaft" (Ulrich Fugger and his company) firm was the first general partnership in Europe and soon changed its name to the "Ulrich Fugger und Gebrüder von Augsburg" (Ulrich Fugger and Brother of Augsburg).

After Jakob Fugger the Elder died in 1469, two of his seven sons, Ulrich and Georg, profitably expanded the firm’s international trade. In 1473 they were granted a coat of arms with a lily, causing this branch of the family to be called Fugger von der Lilie. With the help of their brother Markus in Rome, they handled remittances to the papal court of monies for the sale of indulgences and the procuring of church benefices. From 1508 to 1515 they leased the Roman mint.

Ulrich headed its headquarters in Augsburg, with Georg heading its Nuremberg branch and Jakob handling international affairs. In 1494 the Fuggers established their first public company with a capital of 54,385 guilders, a sum that was to be doubled two years later.

In 1486 he married Regina Imhoff, daughter of a patrician of Nuremberg. Their son Markus (Marx) was born in 1488, followed by Raymund in 1489. These sons made Georg the founder of the "von Kirchberg" and "von Weißenhorn" lines of the Fugger family. Another son, Anton, was born in 1493 - he later became head of Jakob Fugger the Younger's family business and founder of the "von Glött" and "von Babenhausen" princely lines of the Fugger family. This makes Georg Fugger the founder of all the extant lines of the house of "Fugger von der Lilie".