Goldstone J. A. (1998) The Problem of the ‘Early Modern’ World’

Goldstone Jack A. (1998) “The Problem of the ‘Early Modern’ World”, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, 41/3, 249-284.

Introduction

Goldstone proposes here his elegant “own interpretation with minimal defence”(271) of what was the pre-modern world and what brought the modern one. Was there such a thing as an “early modern” period for each nation and the world in general? Goldstone argues, this period was neither “modern” nor “early”.

Stevens M. (2006) Women’s work in early 14th-century Wales

Stevens Matthew (2006) “Reassessing urban women’s work before the Black Death: a case study, 1300-49″, paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Economic History Society, Reading, 6 p.

This article is available on line.

Introduction

This paper focuses on the borough of Ruthin is Wales, an active market town, during the first half of the 14th century to explore female involvement in the urban labour market. Two models have been proposed by historians:David Herlihy considers that by 1250 female participation to urban economic enterprises peaked and soon after declined until the Black Death (1349) when labour shortage reversed that trend. After the plague women’s role in the urban workforce declined steadily.

Abelor G. (1973) The great alteration of the French roads in the 18th century

Arbellot Guy (1973) “La grande mutation des routes de France au XVIIIe siècle”, Annales. Histoire, Sciences Sociales, 28/3. 765-791.

This article is available on line.

Introduction

When Louis XIV died (1715), the roads of the kingdom he was leaving to his successor were in a dreadful state. This was a major bottleneck for the growing economic and administrative activities. The controleur général (finance secretary) Orry and the intendant Trudaine decided to repair the old roads and build new ones where carts and coaches could travel fast.

Clark G. and Hamilton G. (2006) Survival of the richest in pre-industrial England

Clark Gregory and Hamilton Gillian (2006) “Survival of the Richest : The Malthusian Mechanism in Pre-Industrial England”, Journal of Economic History, 66/3, 707-736.

All the tables and figures of this post have been shamelessly stolen from this article available on line.

Introduction

The ‘Malthusian’ model of pre-industrial societies depicts a situation in which “incomes are kept at subsistence levels by the interaction of fertility and land supply” (707). Although, due to a chronic lack of sources, the relationship implied by this model between wealth and reproductive success has proved elusive(708). Different studies contradict each other (709). Life expectancy did not seem to significantly rise during the periods of high wages such as the 15th century. Similarly, over the pre-industrial era it appears that was only a slight correlation between higher grain price and reduced fertility (a doubling of prices would on average only lead to a reduction in fertility inferior to 15%).

Seasons and history

This is my first post dedicated to… well… me. I’ll try not to bother too often with those, but I need to put my ideas in order.

As far as I can tell (my knowledge is limited) the problem of seasonality has pretty much been ignored by economic historians. At best it took a paragraph to deal with it here and there, but year-on-year trends have always received more attention. Yet it is quite obvious that seasonality is a very interesting subject that could shed a new light on topics such as pre-modern growth, living conditions, etc.

Epstein S. R. (2000) The late medieval integration crisis

Epstein Stephen R. (2000) “The late medieval crisis as “integration crisis’” in idem Freedom and Growth. The rise of states and markets in Europe, 1300-1750, New York/London: Routledge/LSE, 38-72.

Introduction

The post-war historians thought ‘traditional societies’ did not experienced growth in per caput income due to the lack of technological innovation. But recent research has shown they could be much more productive then formerly thought, so pre-modern societies operated well below their potential: technology was not a fundamental constraint. In agriculture, only a handful of regions were reaching their technological frontier: Essex, Flanders, Lombardy, etc. Elsewhere, the bulk of the medieval innovations was still to be introduced (38). Commercial progress also allowed specialisation to take place, but warfare regularly reversed these improvements (39).

Seminar

At the USC

Eric Carlson (Gustavus Adolphus Colleg) Saturday, April 19, 10 am-12 pm, Huntington Library Overseers’ Room. Early Modern British History Seminar, EMSI

At UCLA

Kevin Terraciano, April 17, History Department Colloquium: Settler Colonialism in Comparative Perspective : “Secondary Settler Colonizers: Indian Allies of the Spaniards in the Conquest of Mexico”. Details.

Brad Delong’s morning coffee: why study economic history?

It goes without saying but it goes so much better when you say it so intelligently.

Sousa F. (2005) Silk industry in northeastern Portugal (15th-19th century)

De Sousa Fernando (2005) “The silk industry in Trás-os-Montes during the Ancient Regime”, e-Journal of Portuguese History, 3/2, 14 p.

This article is available on line.

Introduction

Trás-os-Montes is located in the North East of Portugal, it is a land-locked region close to the Spanish border. The silk industry started there in the 15th century but silkworms had been reared in the region since the 1200s. Although a significant part of the activity was located in Bragança, lesser towns and the countryside also enjoyed a share of it (Vinhais, Freixo de Espadaà Cinta, Chacim) (1).

Goldstone J.A. (1988) East and West in the 17th century

Goldstone Jack A. (1988) “East and West in the Seventeenth Century: Political Crises in Stuart England, Ottoman Turkey, and Ming China”, Comparative Studies in Society and History, 30/1, 103-142.

Criticism of the previous interpretations:

• Too Eurocentric: they assume that the West was the epicentre of a crisis due to the rise of capitalism and of the modern state (Marx and Weber). Significantly, the crisis seems to have had more consequences in the East than in the West. The simultaneity of the English revolution, the Anatolian turmoil and the end of the Ming is not either merely casual: “behind all of these events lay a common causal framework rooted in a wide-ranging ecological crisis” (104). The author intends to “note certain cogent similarities that make comparative analysis possible” (105).