Power and Plenty

Ronald Findlay is the Ragnar Nurkse Professor of Economics at Columbia University. He is the author of "Factor Proportions, Trade, and Growth"and "Trade, Development, and Political Economy". Kevin H. O'Rourke is professor of economics at Trinity College, Dublin. He is the coauthor of "Globalization and History".

"The excellent new book Power and Plenty explains why some countries are rich, and why others are not. [Recent books] all try to explain the biggest question of the modern world: why some [countries] are rich and other poor. Now, we have...Power and Plenty, a tome that combines the interpretive focus of the new school of explainers with the breadth and depth of the old narratives. They also put neoliberal economic theory to the historical test by asking what it would predict, and then contrasting those forecasts with history's actual path. Findlay and O'Rourke tell their tale exceptionally well."--Eric Rauchway, The New Republic "[A] splendidly ambitious new book...an excellent reference book for anyone wanting a better understanding of economic developments in the last millennium."--Economist "Aiming at nothing less than documenting the history of world trade over the last 1,000 years, Power and Plenty...appears to be required reading...for the purposes of better understanding how the world works."--Andrew Leonard, Salon.com "This new history of the last thousand years of world trade is remarkable in both its grand sweep and its scholarly depth. It pieces together the story of global commerce from the medieval spice traders and nomads of Central Asia to the discovery and incorporation of the New World, to the Industrial Revolution and the rise of Europe, and to the globalizing forces of the postwar world economy. One theme is the importance of the 'vast webs of interrelationships' between western Europe and other regions that, beginning in the medieval period, set the stage for modern economic growth. The other theme is the critical role of war in propelling economic change through upheaval and adaptation."--G. John Ikenberry, Foreign Affairs "Power and Plenty is a wide-ranging survey, both of the facts and of the literature, not an essay organized around a single thesis. It takes on, and treats seriously, a ton of material. Bearing that in mind, it is...engaging...well written, spiced with nuggets of fascinating information and dry wit. [Findlay and O'Rourke's] economics is sophisticated and mainstream...but enriched with an unusual attention to noneconomic factors--or, as the authors put it, 'a sustained emphasis on conflict, violence and geopolitics.'"--Clive Crook, Financial Times "[A] solid new book. Power and Plenty is an ambitious endeavor that examines the works in the second millennium in light of globalization, deglobalization, reglobalization, and globalization as we know it today. The book fills a gap by scrutinizing the technological and political causes behind the long-term trends during the past thousand years. [The authors] have drawn exhaustively on the historical, political, and economic literature of the relevant periods for virtually all the major regions in the world."--Wan Lixin, Shanghai Daily "In this magnificently conceived and executed work, Findlay and O'Rourke set out the history of global trade and show how it has been influenced by economic development and politics over the last thousand years. The authors have an important story to tell and they tell it superbly. This is a work brimming with scholarship, deftly combining narrative history with accessible economic analysis. This is a goldmine of a book. Open it where you will, there are nuggets to be extracted. It will remain the standard work on the history of world trade and indeed the development of the world economy for many years to come."--Frank Geary, Irish Times "This magisterial volume presents an analytical history of world trade from 1000 CE to the present, with informed speculation about future trends thrown in for good measure. It is a very considerable achievement, for which Findlay and O'Rourke deserve great praise."--M. Veseth, Choice "[T]he best book of its sort since David Landes' Wealth and Poverty of Nations."--David Warsh, Economic Principals "[T]his is a big, important work... The authors have mastered an incredibly voluminous literature ... and produced the only truly comprehensive history of trade in the second millennium... [T]his is a book that should be widely read."--David S. Jacks, World Trade Review "International trade has shaped the modern world, yet until now no single book has been available for both economists and general readers that traces the history of the international economy from its earliest beginnings to the present day. Power and Plenty fills this gap, providing the first full account of world trade and development over the course of the last millennium."--Wider Angle "This is a well researched volume which is simply delightful to read. In most of the topics about which I have some knowledge, I found the analyses and the judgments offered by the authors both balanced and insightful. I expect this book will remain the standard text for many years to come."--Sevket Pamuk, EH.Net "This is a huge enterprise, an illuminating work, a tour de force that successfully combines political and economic history of a thousand years... A major contribution to the history of and debates about globalization."--Ivan T. Berend, International History Review "Power and Plenty serves as an excellent one-volume survey on the role played by the interaction of economic and political forces in shaping the world economy of the last 1000 years. The book should be read by any serious student of world economic history, international trade, or international relations."--John T. Dalton, Southern Economic Journal "Power and Plenty ... with its depth and extensive coverage, makes an excellent reference work for the study world history and the history of world trade. It is a work of superb scholarship befitting the scholarly reputations of each of the co-authors, Findlay for his work in the theory of international trade and development and O'Rourke for his studies in economic history and globalization. This book will be widely read, cited, and discussed as a landmark volume on its subjects."--Stanley Engerman, New Global Studies "By adopting a broad view across such an expanse of both space and time, Findlay and O'Rourke are able to perceive patterns that few others have identified and bring a compelling new perspective to several historical and theoretical debates that benefit from a larger view."--Robert D. Fannion, Comparative Political Studies "Findlay and O'Rourke provide an impressive survey of 1000 years of trade and its interaction with geopolitics and political economy on a global scale that strives consciously to avoid a Eurocentric stance... [T]his is a compelling and valuable volume."--C. Knick Harley, Economic History Review "Almost anyone researching an aspect of the history of international trade will find this an excellent and stimulating starting point and will be aided by an impressive bibliography that includes many older classics as well as recent additions to the literature."--Simon Ville, International Journal of Maritime History "[T]his book is indispensible for scholars who seek answers to questions such as: How did the world economy evolve into its present form? What events shaped its current characteristics? What roles did trade play in shaping the modern world economy? Power and Plenty, an exemplary feat of scholarship, fully answers all these questions."--Farhad Rassekh, International Review of Economics & Finance "Power and Plenty is a fascinating book of both world history and economic history, full of detail on both accounts... These ancient intrigues in unfamiliar times and places make for fascinating reading and remind us of how little progress people have made in resisting imperialism throughout the ages. On a more serious note, the book also provides an excellent window into the continuing costs of imperialism."--Michael Perelman, Review of Radical Political Economics "[T]his book is a masterful synthesis of economic analysis and historical narrative. It demands quite a lot of its readers, however, as its more than 600 pages are packed with facts, conclusions and implications for economic development, never hesitating to elaborate on the complexities of international trade relations during the last millennium."--Erik Lindberg, Scandinavian Economic History Review

• Acknowledgments xiii Preface xvi Chapter 1: Introduction: Geographical and Historical Background 1 Western Europe 4 Eastern Europe 11 North Africa and Southwest Asia: The Islamic World 15 Central (or Inner) Asia 24 South Asia 29 Southeast Asia 33 East Asia (China, Korea, and Japan) 37 Chapter 2: TheWorld Economy at the Turn of the First Millennium 43 The Golden Age of Islam 48 China: The Sung Economic Miracle 61 The Indian Ocean and Southeast Asian Trade 67 The Pirenne Thesis 71 Eastern Europe: The Viking Connection 73 The Economy ofWestern Europe 80 Chapter 3: World Trade 1000-1500: The Economic Consequences of Genghis Khan 87 Trade and War in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, 1000-1350 88 The Indian Ocean and the South China Sea, 1000-1350 98 The Pax Mongolica and Overland Trade, 1000-1350 101 Eurasia on the Eve of the Black Death 109 The Black Death 111 Trade between Western and Eastern Europe, 1350-1500 120 Overland Trade, 1350-1500: The Aftermath of the Pax Mongolica 124 The Emergence of Russia 126 The Middle East, the Mediterranean, and International Trade, 1350-1500 127 Southeast Asia and China, 1350-1500 133 Quantifying the Late Medieval Spice Trade 140 Chapter 4: World Trade 1500-1650: Old World Trade and New World Silver 143 Portugal, the Atlantic, and the Indian Ocean 145 Spain, Portugal, and the New World 158 The Pacific and East Asia 167 The Dutch Rise to Primacy in World Trade 175 Russia, Sweden, and the Baltic, 1500-1650 187 Southeast Asia during the Age of Commerce 194 The Cape Route, Venice, and the Middle East 204 Silver, Silk, and Spices 212 Chapter 5: World Trade 1650-1780: The Age of Mercantilism 227 Origins of the British Empire: Trade, Plunder, and Settlement 229 Mercantilism, Commercial Rivalry, and the Anglo-Dutch Wars 238 Britain, France, and the Dutch Republic 245 Britain and France: Commercial Expansion and the Second Hundred Years'War 247 India: The Disintegration of the Mughal Empire and the Transition to Colonial Rule 262 Southeast Asia and the End of the Age of Commerce 275 TheManchu Empire 284 China's Overseas Trade 286 Chinese and Russian Overland Trade 295 Conclusion 304 Chapter 6: Trade and the Industrial Revolution 311 Trade during the Industrial Revolution 324 Trade, Overseas Expansion, and the Industrial Revolution 330 Why Britain? Why Europe and Not Asia? 346 Conclusion 364 Chapter 7: World Trade 1780-1914: The Great Specialization 365 War and Revolution 366 The Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars: Short-Run Implications 369 The Revolutionary and NapoleonicWars: Long-Run Implications 371 The Industrial Revolution and Transportation Technology 378 Bulk Commodities and Heckscher-Ohlin Effects 383 Nineteenth-Century Imperialism 387 Nineteenth-Century Trade Policy 395 Commodity Market Integration, 1815-1914 402 Complementary Factor Flows and the Great Frontier 407 Trade and the Global Division of Labor 411 Trade, Tropical Frontiers, and the Great Divergence 414 The Terms of Trade 424 Conclusion 425 Chapter 8: World Trade 1914-39: Deglobalization 429 WorldWar I 429 The Aftermath of War 435 Interwar Commercial Policy 443 Transport Costs 455 The Volume of World Trade 458 Price Convergence and Divergence 461 The Great Depression, the Collapse of World Trade, and the Developing Countries 465 The Collapse of the Ottoman Empire 469 Conclusion 471 Chapter 9: Reglobalization: The Late Twentieth Century in Historical Perspective 473 World War II 473 Geopolitical Consequences: Communism, the Cold War, and Decolonization 476 The Gradual Reconstruction of the Atlantic Economy: 1950-70 489 Policy Divergence: 1945-80 493 Reglobalization: 1980-2000 496 International Transport Costs 501 Trends in Openness: Quantities and Prices 505 Unraveling the Great Specialization 512 Openness and Convergence in the Late Twentieth Century 515 Conclusion 525 Chapter 10: Globalization at the Dawn of the Twenty-First Century 527 The Future of Globalization: Economic Challenges 534 The Future of Globalization: Political Challenges 539 Bibliography 547 Index 593