Bartolomé Yun-Casalilla is Professor of Early Modern History at the Universidad Pablo de Olavide in Seville, Spain and Head of the Department of History and Civilisation at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy. Patrick K. O'Brien is Professor of Global Economic History at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and Convenor of a European Research Council Programme on 'Regimes for the Production and Diffusion of Useful and Reliable Knowledge in the East and the West' (URKEW).

• 1. Introduction: the rise of the fiscal state in Eurasia from a global, comparative and transnational perspective BARTOLOMÉ Yun-Casalilla; Part I. North Atlantic Europe: 2. Long-term trends in the fiscal history of the Netherlands, 1515–1913 Wantje Fritschy, MARJOLEIN 't Hart and Edwin Horlings; 3. Taxation in the Habsburg Low Countries and Belgium, 1579–1914 Paul Janssens; 4. The rise of the fiscal state in France, 1500–1914 Richard Bonney; 5. The politics of British taxation, from the Glorious Revolution to the Great War Martin Daunton; Part II. Central and Eastern Europe: 6. Finances and power in the German state system Michael North; 7. Financing an empire: the Austrian composite monarchy, 1650–1848 Renate Pieper; 8. The Russian fiscal state, 1600–1914 Peter Gatrell; Part III. South Atlantic Europe and the Mediterranean: 9. From pioneer mercantile state to ordinary fiscal state: Portugal, 1498–1914 EUGENIA MATA; 10. Spain: from composite monarchy to nation state, 1492–1914. An exceptional case? FRANCISCO Comín Comín and Bartolomé Yun-Casalilla; 11. Republics and principalities in Italy Luciano Pezzolo; 12. The formation of fiscal states in Italy: the Papal States Fausto Piola Caselli; 13. The evolution of fiscal institutions in the Ottoman empire, 1500–1914 Şevket Pamuk; Part IV. Asia: 14. Continuation and efficiency of the Chinese fiscal state, 700 BC–1911 AD Kent Deng; 15. Taxation and good governance in China, 1500–1914 R. Bin Wong; 16. The rise of a Japanese fiscal state Masaki Nakabayashi; 17. Fiscal states in Mughal and British India John F. Richards; 18. Afterword: reflexions on fiscal foundations and contexts for the formation of economically effective Eurasian states from the rise of Venice to the Opium War Patrick K. O'Brien.