An Economic History of Nineteenth-Century Europe: Diversity and Industrialization

by Ivan Berend

Overview

Why did some countries and regions of Europe reach high levels of economic advancement in the nineteenth century, while others were left behind? This new transnational survey of the continent's economic development highlights the role of regional differences in shaping each country's economic path and outcome. Presenting a clear and cogent explanation of the historical causes of advancement and backwardness, Ivan Berend integrates social, political, institutional and cultural factors as well as engaging in debates about the relative roles of knowledge, the state and institutions. Featuring boxed essays on key personalities including Adam Smith, Friedrich List, Gustave Eiffel and the Krupp family, as well as brief histories of innovations such as the steam engine, vaccinations and the co-operative system, the book helps to explain the theories and macro-economic trends that dominated the century and their impact on the subsequent development of the European economy right up to the present day.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781107689992
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	11/15/2012
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	566
Product dimensions:	6.85(w) x 9.69(h) x 0.98(d)

About the Author

Ivan T. Berend is Distinguished Professor in the Department of History at the University of California, Los Angeles. His publications include An Economic History of Twentieth-Century Europe: Economic Regimes from Laissez-Faire to Globalization (Cambridge University Press, 2006) and Europe Since 1980 (Cambridge University Press, 2010).

Table of Contents

Introduction; Part I. Gradual Revolution: 1. From merchant to industrial capitalism in Northwestern Europe; Part II. Successful Industrial Transformation of the West: 2. Knowledge and the entrepreneurial state; 3. Agriculture, transportation, and communication; 4. The organisation of business and finance; 5. Three versions of successful industrialization; 6. The miracle of knowledge and the state: Scandinavia; 7. Demographic revolution, transformation of life and standard of living; 8. The Europeanization of Europe; Part III. The Peripheries: Semi-Success or Failure of Modern Transformation: 9. The 'sleeping' peripheries, traditional institutions and values; 10. The Western sparks that ignite modernization; 11. Advantage from dependence: Central Europe, the Baltic Area, Finland and Ireland; 12. Profiting from foreign interests: the Mediterranean and Russia; 13. The predator Leviathan in peasant societies: the Balkans and the borderlands of Austria-Hungary; Epilogue: economic disparity – and alternative postwar economic regimes; References.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"A masterful survey that puts the history back in economic history. It will make an outstanding textbook for undergraduate courses in nineteenth-century European economic history." -George Grantham, McGill University

"After his masterful Economic History of Twentieth-Century Europe, Ivan Berend gives us the indispensible companion volume on the 19th century, another masterpiece in comparative economic history. Few scholars can rival Berend's deep knowledge of the multifarious European economies, their mutual interaction and slow integration, as well as the complex links between the economy and the cultural, social and political developments that make Europe so complex and unique. This is a 'must read' book for students and the general educated public alike." -Gianni Toniolo, Duke University and Libera Università degli Studi Sociali, Roma

"Professor Berend’s knowledge of European comparative economic history is unparalleled, and he here offers a wide-ranging and deep analysis of that subject, illuminating the crucial issue of uneven continental development in the long nineteenth century. Combining an impressive variety of analytical frameworks and approaches, his study fills an important gap with confidence and persuasive insight." -Barry Supple, University of Cambridge

"Writing new economic history of Europe from a regional perspective is a very ambitious project and an increasingly difficult task for a single individual. I can only praise and admire Professor Berend for his ambition, erudition, and courage. The coverage of multiple dimensions, economic, social and cultural, of economic disparities during 19th century industrialisation in Europe is really impressive." -Leandro Prados de la Escosura, Universidad Carlos III, Madrid

Editorial Reviews

"A masterful survey that puts the history back in economic history. It will make an outstanding textbook for undergraduate courses in nineteenth-century European economic history." -George Grantham, McGill University

"After his masterful Economic History of Twentieth-Century Europe, Ivan Berend gives us the indispensible companion volume on the 19th century, another masterpiece in comparative economic history. Few scholars can rival Berend's deep knowledge of the multifarious European economies, their mutual interaction and slow integration, as well as the complex links between the economy and the cultural, social and political developments that make Europe so complex and unique. This is a 'must read' book for students and the general educated public alike." -Gianni Toniolo, Duke University and Libera Università degli Studi Sociali, Roma

"Professor Berend’s knowledge of European comparative economic history is unparalleled, and he here offers a wide-ranging and deep analysis of that subject, illuminating the crucial issue of uneven continental development in the long nineteenth century. Combining an impressive variety of analytical frameworks and approaches, his study fills an important gap with confidence and persuasive insight." -Barry Supple, University of Cambridge

"Writing new economic history of Europe from a regional perspective is a very ambitious project and an increasingly difficult task for a single individual. I can only praise and admire Professor Berend for his ambition, erudition, and courage. The coverage of multiple dimensions, economic, social and cultural, of economic disparities during 19th century industrialisation in Europe is really impressive." -Leandro Prados de la Escosura, Universidad Carlos III, Madrid

"Essential." -Choice

From the Publisher