Routledge Contemporary Economic History of Europe – serie

This book examines Irish economic development in the twentieth century compared with other European countries. It traces the growth of the Republic's economy from its separation from Britain in the early 1920s through to the present. It assesses the factors which encouraged and inhibited economic development, and concludes with an appraisal of the country's present state and future prospects.

Jan L. van Zanden in The Economic History of the Netherlands 1914-1995 answers these questions. In the first four chapters the long development of the economy is analysed in detail. Central to this part of the book are the rise (and decline) of managerial enterprise; the growth (and fall) of trade unions; and the expansion (and crisis) of the welfare state. The particular Dutch features of these institutional changes are highlighted. The second part of the book deals with different periods of growth (from 1914-1929, and 1950-1973), and relative stagnation (1929-1950, and 1973-1995). Moreover, van Zanden examines the role the Netherlands played in the process of European integration, and gives an explanation of the success of the 'Dutch job machine' in the 1980s and 1990s.

This book examines Irish economic development in the twentieth century compared with other European countries. It traces the growth of the Republic's economy from its separation from Britain in the early 1920s through to the present. It assesses the factors which encouraged and inhibited economic development, and concludes with an appraisal of the country's present state and future prospects.