On June 11, 1782, John Adams secured a much needed loan for the new Republic from Holland. How exactly did this work in the days of strictly paper currency? What did it mean to loan internationally back then (and even today)?
Did Holland send their own currency? Did they send it in the form of some standard, i.e gold bullion? How did the U.S. pay this back? In some other standard? I just have no concept of how an international power could lend anything other than goods in the 18th century.