StateMaster - Encyclopedia: Gregor MacGregor

Gregor MacGregor (December 24, 1786 – early December 3, 1845) was a Scottish soldier, adventurer and colonizer who fought in the South American struggle for independence. Upon his return to England in 1820, he claimed to be cazique of Poyais (also known as Principality of Poyais, Territory of Poyais, Republic of Poyais). Poyais was a fictional Central American country that MacGregor had invented which, with his help, drew investors and eventually colonists. is the 358th day of the year (359th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1786 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... December 3 is the 337th (in leap years the 338th) day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Cha togar mfhearg gun dioladh (Scottish Gaelic) Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic Government Constitutional monarchy - Monarch Queen Elizabeth II - First Minister... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... 1820 was a leap year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Cacique can mean: A cacique is a tribal chief in Latin America, particularly of the Spanish West Indies and Brazil from the 16th century. ... For other uses, see Central America (disambiguation). ... In political geography and international politics, a country is a political division of a geographical entity, a sovereign territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation and government. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Colonialism. ...

Early life

MacGregor was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on Christmas day 1786. His parents were Captain Daniel MacGregor and Ann Austin. Edinburgh (() pronounced ; Scottish Gaelic: ) is the capital of Scotland and its second largest city. ... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Cha togar mfhearg gun dioladh (Scottish Gaelic) Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic Government Constitutional monarchy - Monarch Queen Elizabeth II - First Minister... Christmas is an annual holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus. ...

In 1803, he joined the Royal Navy. He married Marie Bowater in 1805, who died soon after that. He then served in the Spanish and Portuguese armies, after wich he returned to Edinburgh. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ...

By this time, MacGregor heard about the independence movements in South America and in the Captaincy General of Venezuela in particular, where he arrived in 1811 with the rank of Colonel. This is the history of Venezuela. ...

South American independence

Green Cross of Florida

In 1819, MacGregor led a group of 55 men to capture San Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida from the Spanish. The Spanish were surprised and MacGregor's men overran the island on June 29, and MacGregor raised a flag with a green cross on it. He left a few months later to fight the Spanish. The Sea Islands, Amelia is the southernmost island. ... Amelia Island is the southernmost in a chain of barrier islands stretching from North Carolina to Florida. ...

Cazique of Poyais

Gregor MacGregor came from Latin America to London, England, in 1820 and pronounced that he had been created cazique (or prince) of the Principality of Poyais, an independent nation on the Bay of Honduras. Native chief King George Frederic Augustus I of the Mosquito Shore and Nation had given him the territory of Poyais, 12,500 mile² (32,400 km²) of fertile land with untapped resources, a small number of settlers of British origin, and cooperative natives eager to please. He had created the beginnings of a country with civil service, army and democratic government. Now he needed settlers and investment and had come back to the United Kingdom to give people the opportunity. This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() â€“ on the European continent() â€“ in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified - by Athelstan 927 AD Area - Total 130... 1820 was a leap year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... The term prince, from the Latin root princeps, is used for a member of the highest ranks of the aristocracy or the nobility. ... A principality is a monarchical feudatory or sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a Monarch with the title of prince or princess (a synonym is princedom) or (in the widest sense) a Monarch with another title within the generic use of the term prince. ... Independence is fully autonomous self-government of a nation or state by its residents and population, generally exercising sovereignty. ... Missing image Map of Belize, showing the Gulf of Honduras The Gulf or Bay of Honduras is a large inlet of the Belize, Honduras and Guatemala. ... For the insect, see mosquito The Miskito are a Native American people in Central America. ... The Byzantine civil service in action. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Democracy is a form of government under which the power to alter the laws and structures of government lies, ultimately, with the citizenry. ...

At the time, British merchants were all too eager to enter the South American market that Spain had denied to them. The region had already become more promising in the wake of wars of South American independence, when the new governments of Colombia, Chile and Peru had issued bonds in London Royal Exchange to raise money. Merchants function as professionals who deal with trade, dealing in commodities that they do not produce themselves, in order to produce profit. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Look up Market in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... In finance, a bond is a debt security, in which the issuer owes the holders a debt and is obliged to repay the principal and interest (the coupon) at a later date, termed maturity. ... The term Royal Exchange can refer to: The Royal Exchange in London The Royal Exchange in Manchester The Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

London high society welcomed the colorful figure of MacGregor, and he and his Spanish-American wife Josefa received many invitations. The Lord Mayor of London Christopher Magnay even organized an official reception in London Guildhall. MacGregor claimed descent of clan MacGregor and that Rob Roy MacGregor had been his direct ancestor. He enhanced his allure by telling about his exploits in the Peninsular War and later in the service of Francisco de Miranda, Simón Bolívar and South American independence — tales which were rather embellished. Current Lord Mayor of London John Stuttard during the parade on November 11th, 2006 Michael Berry Savory, Previous Lord Mayor (2004â€“2005) The Right Honourable Lord Mayor of London is the Mayor of the City of London and head of the Corporation of London. ... A Guildhall is a building historically used by guilds for meetings. ... Clan map of Scotland Scottish clans (from Old Gaelic clann, children), give a sense of identity and shared descent to people in Scotland and to their relations throughout the world, with a formal structure of Clan Chiefs officially registered with the court of the Lord Lyon, King of Arms which... Robert Roy MacGregor, usually known simply as Rob Roy, was a Scottish folk hero and outlaw of the 18th century. ... Combatants Kingdom of Spain, United Kingdom, Kingdom of Portugal French Empire The Peninsular War or Spanish War of Independence (Guerra de la Independencia EspaÃ±ola) was a war in the Iberian Peninsula. ... Francisco de Miranda SebastiÃ¡n Francisco de Miranda RodrÃguez (commonly known as Francisco de Miranda March 28, 1750 â€“ July 14, 1816) was a South American revolutionary whose own plan for the independence of the Spanish American colonies failed, but who is regarded as a forerunner of SimÃ³n Bol... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

MacGregor was also introduced to Major William John Richardson and by the winter of 1821 he had made Richardson legate of Poyais. He had also moved to Oak Hall in Richardson's estate in Essex, England, as befit his station as a prince. An office for the Legation of the Territory of Poyais was opened at Dowgate Hill in the City of London. MacGregor enhanced his popularity with elaborate banquets in Oak Hall and invited dignitaries like foreign ambassadors, government ministers and senior military officers. The word legate comes from the Latin legare (to send). It has several meanings, all related to representatives: A legate is a member of a diplomatic embassy. ... Essex is a county in the East of England. ... The City of London is a geographically-small city within Greater London, England. ...

MacGregor also claimed that one of his ancestors was a rare survivor of the Darien Scheme, a failed Scottish attempt of colonization in Panama in 1690s. In order to compensate for this, he said, he had decided to draw most of the settlers from Scotland. For this purpose, he established offices in Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Darien scheme was an unsuccessful attempt by the Kingdom of Scotland to establish a colony on the Isthmus of Panama. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Colonialism. ... Events and Trends Thomas Neale designed Seven Dials The Salem Witchcraft Trials are held in Massachusetts Bay Colony (1692). ... Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Cha togar mfhearg gun dioladh (Scottish Gaelic) Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic Government Constitutional monarchy - Monarch Queen Elizabeth II - First Minister... Edinburgh (() pronounced ; Scottish Gaelic: ) is the capital of Scotland and its second largest city. ... â€œGlaswegianâ€ redirects here. ...

In Edinburgh, MacGregor began to sell land rights for 3 shillings and 3 pence per acre (£40.15/km²). Note that the worker's weekly wage at the time was about £1, which meant that the price was very generous. The price steadily rose to 4 shillings (£0.20). Many people willing to have a new start in the new land signed on with their families. On October 23 1822 MacGregor raised a loan with the total of £200,000 in behalf of the Poyais government. It was in the form of 2000 bearer bonds worth £100 each. A bearer bond or bearer security is a certificate that represents a bond obligation of, or stock in, a corporation or other intangible property. ...

Also in 1822 MacGregor published a 350 page guidebook entitled Sketch of the Mosquito Shore, including the Territory of Poyais, descriptive of the country, supposedly written by one Captain Thomas Strangeways. It described the Poyais with glowing terms and mainly concentrated on how much profit one could get from the country's ample resources. Poyais was said to be a very anglophile region with already existing infrastructure, untapped gold and silver mines and large amounts of fertile soil ready to be settled. The region was even free of tropical diseases. The book also claimed that British settlers had founded the capital of Poyais, St Joseph, in the 1730s. The article is about the Central American area. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Events and Trends The Great Awakening - A Protestant religious movement active in the British colonies of North America Sextant invented (probably around 1730) independently by John Hadley in Great Britain and Thomas Godfrey in the American colonies World leaders Louis XV King of France (king from 1715 to 1774) George...

Eager settlers

The Legation of Poyais chartered a ship called Honduras Packet, whose crew MacGregor already knew, and five London merchants received contracts to provision the ship with food and ammunition. Its cargo also included a chest full of "Poyais Dollars", poyaisian currency MacGregor had printed in Scotland. Many of the settlers had changed their pounds to Poyais dollars.

On September 10, 1822 the Honduras Packet departed from the Port of London with 70 would-be-settlers aboard. They included doctors, lawyers and a banker who had been promised appropriate positions in the Poyais civil service. Some had also purchased officer commissions in the Poyaisian army. is the 253rd day of the year (254th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1822 (MDCCCXXII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... The Port of London lies along the banks of the River Thames in London, England. ... A lawyer, according to Blacks Law Dictionary, is a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person licensed to practice law. ... For other uses, see Bank (disambiguation). ...

On January 22, 1823 another ship, the Kennersley Castle, left Leith Harbour in Scotland for Poyais with 200 would-be-settlers. The ship also carried enough provisions for a year. It arrived in the appropriate place March 20 and spent two days looking for a port. Eventually the newcomers found the settlers who had sailed on the Honduras Packet. January 22 is the 22nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1823 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Formerly a municipal burgh,[1] Leith is a town at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is the port of Edinburgh, Scotland. ... March 20 is the 79th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (80th in leap years). ...

What the settlers had found was an untouched jungle, some natives and couple of American hermits who had made their homes there. "St Joseph" consisted of only couple of ruins of a previous attempt at settlement abandoned on the previous century. There was no settlement of any kind. The Honduras Packet had been swept away by a storm. Box Log Falls, Lamington National Park, Queensland, Australia Jungle usually refers to a dense forest in a hot climate, such as a tropical rainforest. ... Onuphrius lived as a hermit in the desert of Upper Egypt in the late 4th century A hermit (from the Greek erÄ“mos, signifying desert, uninhabited, hence desert-dweller) is a person who lives to some greater or lesser degree in seclusion and/or isolation from society. ...

When some of the laborers begun to build at least rudimentary shelter for themselves, the officers and civil servants decided to try to find a way out. Lieutenant-colonel Hector Hall, would-be-governor of Poyais, had left to look for the Honduras Packet or another ship to take them back to Britain.

The would-be-settlers begun to argue with each other and some of them, who had expected better accommodation, refused to do anything. The Kennersley Castle sailed away. Tropical diseases also begun to take their toll. One settler committed suicide. Tropical diseases are infectious diseases that either occur uniquely in tropical and subtropical regions (which is rare) or, more commonly, are either more widespread in the tropics or more difficult to prevent or control. ...

In April, the Mexican Eagle, an official ship from British Honduras with the chief magistrate on board, accidentally found the settlers. Chief magistrate Bennet listened to their story and told them that there was no such place as Poyais. He agreed to take them to British Honduras. A couple of days later Colonel Hall returned with King George Frederic and announced that the King had effectively revoked the land grant because MacGregor had assumed sovereignty. The Mexican Eagle took first sixty settlers to British Honduras. The rest were evacuated later. Motto (Latin) Under the Shade I Flourish Anthem Land of the Free Royal anthem God Save the Queen Capital Belmopan Largest city Belize City Official languages English (de jure), Spanish (de facto) Government Commonwealth Realm - Monarch Elizabeth II - Governor-General Colville Young - Prime Minister Said Musa Independence from the United...

Many settlers were weakened on their short sea voyage and many of them later died in hospitals in British Honduras. 180 of the 250 would-be settlers had perished during the ordeal.

Edward Codd, Superintendent for Belize, sent a warning to London where naval vessels were sent to call back five ships of would-be-settlers that had departed after the Kennersley Castle. Those survivors who did not decide to settle on the British Honduras or move elsewhere in Americas sailed on the Ocean on August 1, 1823 to London. More people died during that journey and less than 50 came back alive to Britain. is the 213th day of the year (214th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1823 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

72 days later the Ocean docked in London. The next day, city papers published the whole story.

However, regardless of the experiences of the survivors, some of them refused to believe that MacGregor would have been the main culprit. One of them, James Hastie, who had lost two of his children to tropical diseases, wrote and published a book Narrative of a Voyage in the Ship Kennersley Castle from Leith Roads to Poyais. He blamed Sir Gregor's advisers and publicists for spreading the false information. A group of survivors signed a declaration of their belief that had Sir Gregor gone with them, things would have turned out differently. Major Richardson sued the papers for libel and defended MacGregor against the charges of fraud.

MacGregor himself, however, had already left for Paris, France, in October. City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) The Eiffel Tower in Paris, as seen from the esplanade du TrocadÃ©ro. ...

Poyaisian scheme in France

MacGregor had already contacted trading organization Compagnie de la Nouvelle Neustrie and commissioned it to further the affairs of Poyais in France.

In March 1825 MacGregor summoned from London Gustavus Butler Hippisley, an acquaintance from the army, on the pretext of discussing his appointment as a representative of Poyais in Colombia. Hippisley was to write about the Poyais affair in France in Acts of Oppression Committed under the Administration of m. de Villele, Prime minister of Charles X, in the years 1825-6.

MacGregor claimed to Hippisley that he needed the help of the French government to obtain a formal renunciation of any (nonexistent) claims Spain might have to Poyais and that he had met with French Prime Minister Jean-Baptiste de Villèle. MacGregor and la Nouvelle Noustrie, already had plans to send French emigrants to Poyais. Hippisley wrote back to London, castigating the journalists who had called MacGregor a "penniless adventurer". Jean-Baptiste Guillaume Joseph Marie Anne SÃ©raphin, comte de VillÃ¨le (April 14, 1773 - March 13, 1854), was a French statesman. ...

In August, MacGregor published a new constitution of Poyais; he had changed it into a republic with himself as the head of state. On August 18 1825 he issued a £300.00 loan with 2,5% interest through the London bank of Thomas Jenkins & Company. The bond was probably never issued. At the same time, la Nouvelle Noustrie recruited settlers with the requirement that they buy FFr100 worth of the company shares. in particular, for the archaizing senses of republic, as a translation of politeia or res publica Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box: A republic is a form of government maintained by a state or country whose sovereignty is based on popular consent and whose...

When French officials noticed that a number of people had obtained passports in order to voyage to a country they had never heard of, they seized the la Nouvelle Neustrie vessel in Le Havre. Some of the would-be-emigrants realized that something was not right and demanded investigation of the affairs of the la Nouvelle Neustrie and Sir Gregor. Hippisley was arrested but MacGregor was nowhere to be found. For other types of travel document, see Travel document. ... Le Havre is a city in Normandy, northern France, on the English Channel, at the mouth of the Seine. ... Emigration is the action and the phenomenon of leaving ones native country to settle abroad. ...

Hippisley and MacGregor's secretary Thomas Irving were held in custody in La Force prison when the police investigation was going on. Lehuby, one of the directors of La Nouvelle Noustrie fled to Belgium. MacGregor went into hiding until he was brought into the prison December 7, two months after the first arrests. He proceeded to comfort his associates and in January 1826 made a proclamation to Central American states - it was written in French and primarily meant to affect French opinion. The accused were later moved to Bicetre prison. La Force prison is a French prison, located in Paris. ... The BicÃªtre Hospital, located in Le Kremlin-BicÃªtre, which is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. ...

The trial begun April 6, 1826. MacGregor, Hippisley, Irving and Lehuby (in absentia) were accused of fraud by means of the Poyais emigration program. Their lawyer Merilhou, put the blame on Lehuby and prosecutor was ready to withdraw the charges if the men were deported from France. Initially the court agreed but judges changed their minds when Belgium agreed to extradite Lehuby. Lawyer Merilhou was later summoned as a witness for the prosecution. is the 96th day of the year (97th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The oldest surviving photograph, NicÃ©phore NiÃ©pce, circa 1826 1826 (MDCCCXXVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

The new trial begun July 10, 1826, and last for four days. Merilhou's replacement Berville eloquently put the blame on anybody else but MacGregor. MacGregor was acquitted and Hippisley and Irving were released. Lehuby was convicted for 13 months for making false promises. is the 191st day of the year (192nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Lesser Poyais schemes

In 1826 MacGregor returned to London, where the furore over his affairs had died down. Shortly after his arrival he was arrested and taken to Tothill Fields Bridewell prison in Westminster on charges now unknown. He was released in less than a week. The oldest surviving photograph, NicÃ©phore NiÃ©pce, circa 1826 1826 (MDCCCXXVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Tothill Fields Bridewell (also known as Tothill Fields Prison and Westminster Bridewell) was a prison located in the Westminster area of central London between 1618 and 1884. ... Westminster is a district within the City of Westminster in London. ...

MacGregor proceeded with the modified schemes. This time he claimed that (non-existent) natives had elected him as the head of state and became just "Cacigue of the Republic of Poyais" and opened a new office at 23 Threadneedle Street in the City, without any diplomatic trappings and in much a smaller scale than before. He issued a loan worth £800.000 as 20-year bonds with Thomas Jenkins & Company as brokers. The scheme was announced in the summer 1827. Queen Elizabeth II, is the Head of State of 16 countries including: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Jamaica, New Zealand and the Bahamas, as well as crown colonies and overseas territories of the United Kingdom. ...

However, investors were now more careful and somebody circulated a handbill that warned against investing in "Poyais humbug". MacGregor had to pass the most of the unsold certificates to a consortium of speculators for an undisclosed sum. He made only a little money.

Further Poyais schemes were equally successful. In 1828 MacGregor tried to sell land from Poyais at the price of 5 shillings per acre. In 1830 Robert Charles Frederic, brother and successor of King George Frederic, began to offer for sale the same territories to lumber companies. These certificates competed with those of MacGregor. When older investors demanded their interest, he could only pay with more certificates to the value of the interest payments he owed. Others begun to use the same trick too - two men named Upton opened a rival "Poyaisian office"" and offered land debentures for sale. Year 1828 (MDCCCXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a leap year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Liberty Leading the People by EugÃ¨ne Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution 1830 (MDCCCXXX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Timber in storage for later processing at a sawmill Lumber or Timber is a term used to describe wood, either standing or that has been processed for useâ€”from the time trees are felled, to its end product as a material suitable for industrial useâ€”as structural material for construction... In finance, a debenture is a long-term debt instrument used by governments and large companies to obtain funds. ...

In 1831 MacGregor promoted a "Poyaisian New Three per cent Consolidated Stock" as "the President of the Poyaisian Republic". In 1834 he was living in Scotland and had to issue a new series of land certificates as payment for unredeemed securities. In 1836 he wrote a new constitution for the Poyaisian Republic. The last record of any Poyais scheme is in 1837, when he tried to sell some land certificates. Leopold I 1831 (MDCCCXXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Year 1834 (MDCCCXXXIV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Year 1836 (MDCCCXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a leap year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Queen Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom (1837 - 1901) 1837 (MDCCCXXXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

In 1839 Gregor MacGregor moved to Venezuela where he had requested and received a pension as a general who had fought for independence. He died on December 4, 1845. 1839 (MDCCCXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... December 4th redirects here. ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

References

Categories: Articles to be expanded since June 2007 | All articles to be expanded | People of the Venezuelan War of Independence | Year of birth missing | 1845 deaths | Confidence tricksters | Scottish fraudsters | Impostors | Scottish explorers Grifter redirects here. ... Grifter redirects here. ... The victim of a confidence game or magic trick is often called the mark, or the vic. ... A shill is an associate of a person selling goods or services who pretends no association to the seller and assumes the air of an enthusiastic customer. ... A sucker list is a list of persons who have previously been successfully solicited for something. ... The Badger game is an extortion scheme, often perpetrated on married men, in which the victim or mark is deliberately coerced into a compromising position then threatened with public exposure of his acts unless blackmail money is paid. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Bogus Escrow scam is a straightforward confidence trick in which a scammer operates a bogus escrow service. ... The booster bag scam was a scam demonstrated in the TV show The Real Hustle. ... A clip joint is an establishment, usually a strip club or entertainment bar, typically one claiming to offer adult entertainment, in which customers are tricked into paying money and receive poor, or no, goods or services in return. ... The Drop Swindle was a con game commonly used during the 19th and 20th centuries. ... The Embarrassing Cheque is a confidence trick which may also be an urban legend. ... Employment scams, also know as job scams, are a form of advance fee fraud scamming where certain unscrupulous persons posing as recruiters and/or employers offer attractive employment opportunities which require the job seeker to pay them money in advance, usually under the guise of work visas, travel expenses, and... Hustling is the deceptive act of disguising ones skill in a sport or game with the intent of luring someone of probably lesser skill into gambling (or gambling for higher than current stakes) with the hustler, as a form of confidence trick. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Pig-in-a-poke refers to a scam originating in the late middle ages, when meat was scarce, but apparently rats and cats were not. ... Pigeon drop is the name of a confidence trick in which a mark or pigeon is convinced to give up a sum of money in order to secure the rights to a larger sum of money, or more valuable object. ... Reloading is a form of fraud, whereby a victim of one scam is repeatedly approached with more aggressive con artists, often until sucked dry. This form of fraud is especially hurtful for senior people, because they are more susceptible to pressure after the first losses, partly because of hopes to... A shell game is performed with bottle caps on a cardboard box, on Fulton Street in New York City. ... The Slave Reparations Act (also called the Slavery Reparation Tax Credit, Black Tax Credit or Black Inheritance Tax Refund) is a tax fraud related to the concept of Reparations for slavery. ... The Spanish Prisoner is a confidence game dating back to 1588 [1]. In its original form, the confidence artist (con-man) tells his victim (the mark) that he is in correspondence with a wealthy person of high estate who has been imprisoned in Spain (originally by King Philip II) under... The Thai Gem Scam is a confidence trick performed in Bankok, Thailand. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... White van speakers is a scam sales technique in which a salesman makes a buyer believe he is getting a good price on audio merchandise. ... A pyramid scheme is a business model that involves the exchange of money primarily for enrolling other people into the scheme, usually without any product or service being delivered. ... A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that involves paying abnormally high returns (profits) to investors out of the money paid in by subsequent investors, rather than from net revenues generated by any real business, named after Charles Ponzi. ... The unsustainable geometric progression of a classic pyramid scheme A pyramid scheme (also known as Pyramid Scam [1]) is a non-sustainable business model that involves the exchange of money primarily for enrolling other people into the scheme, usually without any product or service being delivered. ... Dona Branca Dona Branca (full name: MarÃa Branca dos Santos; often referred to as The peoples banker. ... Caritas was a Ponzi scheme in the early 1990s in Romania. ... A mugshot of Charles Ponzi Charles Ponzi (1882â€“January 18, 1949) was an Italian immigrant to the United States who became one of the greatest swindlers in American history. ... Bernard Bernie Cornfeld (Istanbul 17 August 1927 - London 27 February 1995) was a prominent businessman and international financier who sold investments in US mutual funds. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... A High Yield Investment Program, or HYIP, is a type of pyramid scheme normally offered via the Internet. ... Investors Overseas Services (IOS) was founded in 1955 by financier Bernard Cornfeld. ... Marina Muravieva Vyacheslav Mavrodi Sergey Mavrodi A certificate for 20 MMM bonds MMM was the company that perpetrated the largest pyramid scheme in Russia in the 1990s, with the possible exception of the GKO government pyramid scheme. ... Make money fast is a title of an electronically forwarded chain letter which became so infamous that the term is now used to describe all sorts of chain letters forwarded over the Internet, by e-mail spam or Usenet newsgroups. ... Reed Slatkin is the perpetrator of the largest Ponzi scheme in the United States since that conducted by Ponzi himself. ... Frank William Abagnale, Jr. ... Aerison in drag Storme Aerison is a con artist who gained notoriety in the 1990s for repeatedly impersonating a female highschool student and later representing himself to be a supermodel. ... Tino De Angelis was a New York-based commodities trader who bought and sold vegetable oil futures around the world. ... Philip Arnold (1829 - 1878) was a con man from Elizabethtown, Kentucky, who was the brains behind a legendary 1872 scam to fool people into investing in western diamond mining operations. ... Julius Nicky W. Arnstein (??? - October 2, 1965) was an American businessman, professional gambler, and con artist. ... Lou The Fixer Blonger (May 13, 1849–April 20, 1924), born Louis Belonger, was a Civil War veteran, saloonkeeper, detective and well-known gambler, but is most often noted as the organizer of an extensive ring of confidence tricksters in Denver that operated for more than 25 years. ... Edward Big Ed Burns, was an american 19th century confidence man and crime boss. ... David Race Bannon (born 1963) is a pseudonym for David Wayne Dilley, an American fraudster who posed as a former Interpol agent and wrote fictional accounts of his alleged adventures in various Asian countries, as well as other subjects including Asian politics, and computer science. ... Matthew Bevan Cox (born July 2, 1969), commonly known as Matthew Cox, also sometimes known as Matthew B. Cox and Matt Cox, is an American convicted felon and con man who has been convicted of conspiracy and grand theft. ... Louis Enricht (????-1923) was a US inventor who claimed that he had invented a substitute for gasoline. ... Billie Sol Estes (born 1924) is a scandal-ridden Texas-based financier best known for his association with US President Lyndon B. Johnson and for accusing Johnson with a variety of crimes, including the assassination of John F. Kennedy. ... Arthur Ferguson (1800s–1938) was a Scottish con artist. ... Peter Foster addressing the media at the height of Cheriegate. Peter Foster, (born in Australia on 26 September 1962) has been described as the ultimate international man of mischief[1] , a super salesman to some, conman to others, but undoubtedly a person who has lived a champagne lifestyle in the... On the cover of his step-brothers 2001 book Son of a Grifter: The Twisted Tale of Sante and Kenny Kimes, the Most Notorious Con Artists in America Kenny Kimes (born 1975) is an American con artist serving a life sentence for murder. ... Sante Kimes (pronounced SHAWN-TAY) is an American serial killer who is most famous for the murder of Irene Silverman, a New York City socialite. ... Henri Lemoine ( 1905â€“1908) was a French con artist who claimed to be able to produce synthetic diamonds. ... Victor Lustig (January 4, 1890 â€“ March 11, 1947) is held to have been one of the most talented confidence tricksters who ever lived. ... George Parker (1870-1936) was one of the most audacious con men in American history. ... Steven Jay Russell (born 1958) is a US con artist and impostor who has escaped from prison number of times. ... Jefferson Randolph Soapy Smith (1860-1898) Jefferson Randolph (Soapy) Smith II (1860-July 8, 1898) was an American con artist and gangster who had a major hand in the organized criminal affairs and operations of Denver, Colorado, Creede, Colorado, and Skagway, Alaska from 1879 to 1898. ... Alvin Clarence Thomas sometimes known as the character he created, Titanic Thompson, (1892 - 1974), was the legendary American golfer, gambler, and, uniquely gifted, hustler. ... William Thompson was an American criminal whose deceptions caused the term confidence man to be coined. ... Joseph Yellow Kid Weil (1877-1975) was one of the most famous American confidence men of his era. ...

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Early life GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");