Cambridge European Economic History. Volume 5. Economic Organizations in Early Modern Europe

Author: (British) Postan et al., Wang Chunfa et al.
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2002-09-01
Features: Broadly speaking, The Cambridge Economic History of Europe can be divided into three parts:
First, the first three volumes constitute the first part of the book, primarily exploring the transition of the European economy from the Middle Ages to the modern era. This involves examining the factors that determined why Europe's economy, rather than others', was the first to complete the shift from an agrarian society to an industrial society, as well as the changes that occurred in different economic sectors during this transition. Among them, the first volume, Medieval Agricultural Life, discusses the transformation of agriculture and rural life; the second volume, Medieval Trade and Industry, explores the channels and changes in economic ties between different countries within Europe; and the third volume, Medieval Economic Organizations and Economic Policy, analyzes the corresponding shifts and adjustments in economic organization and government policy as the scope and focus of economic activities evolved. In fact, the very active new institutional economics has established its theoretical framework by reinterpreting the economic transformation of Europe during this period.
Second, the fourth and fifth volumes form the second part of the book, focusing on Europe's overseas expansion as a whole in the 16th and 17th centuries, as well as the European Industrial Revolution. The fourth volume, An Expanding European Economy in the 16th and 17th Centuries, primarily analyzes the external environment that facilitated economic growth and development, including population growth, scientific thought and achievements, prices, trade patterns and routes, labor supply, the formation of large-scale companies, and mercantilist theories and policies. The fifth volume, Early Modern European Economic Organizations, mainly examines the core mechanisms of industrial production, credit systems, international trade mechanisms, and the role of the state as a producer, consumer, and fiscal authority. The authors' arrangement of this content reflects the fact that the prominent position of European nations in the modern economy was already established long before industrialization began. Industrialization alone is insufficient to explain why European nations dominated the development of the world economy for over three hundred years.
Third, the third part of the book consists of the sixth, seventh, and eighth volumes, which primarily study and analyze the historical development of Western countries' economies since the Industrial Revolution, including the United States and Japan. The sixth volume, The Industrial Revolution and Its Subsequent Economic Development: Income, Population, and Technological Change, focuses on the external factors that drove the Industrial Revolution. The seventh volume, Industrial Economy: Capital, Labor, and Enterprise, primarily examines the internal factors of modern industrial economic growth, such as the supply of capital, labor, and entrepreneurial resources, and is mainly analyzed by country, including Britain, France, Germany, the Scandinavian countries, the United States, Japan, and Russia. The eighth volume, Industrial Economy: The Development of Economic and Social Policies, mainly analyzes the social and economic policies of European nations since the Industrial Revolution and their evolution. Thus, broadly speaking, these three volumes primarily analyze the foundational conditions, growth factors, and changes in government policies related to industrialization.