Abstract
Our knowledge of nineteenth century Dutch economic performance has been greatly improved by recent research. However, the interpretation of long-run Dutch economic development requires a reexamination of the concepts and generalizations used by economists, which derive mostly from the study of other nations, especially Britain. This article proposes both a reassessment of Dutch economic performance in the very long run, and a reconsideration of the concept of modern economic growth.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Abramovitz, M. (1986), ‘Catching Up, Forging Ahead, and Falling Behind,’ Journal of Economic History, 46, pp. 385–406.
Bairoch, P. (1976), ‘Europe's Gross National Product, 1800–1975,’ Journal of European Economic History, 5 (1976), pp. 273–340.
Barbour, V. (1963), Capitalism in Amsterdam in the Seventeenth Century, Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press.
Barro, R.J. (1997), Determinants of Economic Growth. A Cross-Country Empirical Study, Cambridge, Mass., Harvard UP.
Becker, G.S., E.L. Glaeser, and K.M. Murphy (1999), ‘Population and Economic Growth,’ American Economic Review, 89, pp. 145–149
Braudel, F. (1977), Afterthoughts on Material Civilization and Capitalism, Baltimore, Johns Hopkins UP.
Braudel, F. (1972), Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II, 2 vols., New York, Harper and Row.
Braudel, F. and F. Spooner (1967), ‘Prices in Europe from 1450 to 1750,’ in: E.E. Rich and C.H. Wilson (eds.), The Cambridge Economic History of Europe, 4, Cambridge, Cambridge UP, pp. 378–486.
Crafts, N.F.R. (1994), ‘The Industrial Revolution,’ in: R. Floud and D. McCloskey (eds.), The Economic History of Britain since 1700, 1, second edition, Cambridge, Cambridge UP, pp. 44–59.
Davids, K., J. Lucassen, and J.L. van Zanden (1988), De Nederlandse geschiedenis als afwijking van het algemeen menselijk patroon, Amsterdam, NEHA.
Davis, J.A. (1989), ‘Industry in Britain and Europe before 1850. New Perspectives and Old Problems,’ in: P. Mathias and J.A. Davis (eds.), The First Industrial Revolutions, Oxford, Oxford UP, pp. 44–68.
Deane, P. and W.A. Cole (1967), British Economic Growth, 1688–1959, Cambridge, Cambridge UP. The Economist, World in Figures, 1999 Edition, New York.
Gerding, M.A.W. (1995), Vier eeuwen turfwinning. De verveningen in Groningen, Friesland, Drenthe en Overijssel tussen 1550 en 1950, Wageningen, AAG Bijdragen 35.
Gerschenkron, A.(1962), Economic Backwardness in Historical Perspective, Cambridge Mass., Harvard UP.
Griffiths, R.T. and J.M.M. de Meere (1983), ‘The Growth of the Dutch Economy in the Nineteenth Century: Back to Basics?,’ Tijdschrift voor Geschiedenis, 96, pp. 563–572.
Griffiths, R.T (1980), Achterlijk, achter of anders? Aspecten van de economische ontwikkeling van Nederland in de 19e eeuw, Amsterdam, Inaugural lecture VU (Free University).
Harley, C. Knick and N.F.R. Crafts (2000), ‘Productivity Growth, Trade and Structure during the First Industrial Revolution,’ Journal of Economic History, 60 (forthcoming).
Hoppenbrouwers, P. and Jan Luiten van Zanden (eds.), From Peasants to Farmers?, Turnhout, Brepols (forthcoming).
Horlings, E. and J.P. Smits (1997), ‘A Comparison of the Patterns of Growth and Structural Change in the Netherlands and Belgium, 1800–1913,’ unpublished paper.
Jonge, J.A. (1968), De industrialisatie in Nederland tussen 1850 en 1914, Amsterdam, Scheltema and Holkema.
Kuznets, S. (1966), Modern Economic Growth. Rate, Structure and Spread, New Haven/London, Yale UP.
Landes, D. (1998), The Wealth and Poverty of Nations, New York, W.W. Norton.
Maddison, A. (1991), Dynamic Forces in Capitalist Development. A Long-run Comparative View, Oxford, Oxford UP.
Mokyr, J. (1976), Industrialization in the Low Countries 1795–1850. New Haven/London, 1976, Yale UP.
Mokyr, J. (1990), The Lever of Riches. Technological Creativity and Economic Progress, Oxford, Oxford UP.
Mokyr, J. (1994), ‘Progress and Inertia in Technological Change,’ in: J.A. James and M. Thomas (eds.), Capitalism in Context. Essays in Honor of R.M. Hartwell, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, pp. 230–254.
North, D.C. and R.P. Thomas (1973), The Rise of the Western World, Cambridge, Cambridge UP.
Parker, W.N. (1984), Europe, America and the Wider World, Cambridge, Cambridge UP.
Pollard, S. (1981), Peaceful Conquest. The Industrialization of Europe, 1760–1970, Oxford, Oxford UP.
Prados de la Escosura, L. and I. Sanz (1998), ‘Historical Comparisons of Income: A Short-cut Approach,’ in: B. van Ark, E. Buyst, and J.L. van Zanden (eds.), Historical Benchmark Comparisons of Output and Productivity, Seville, Proceedings, XII International Economic History Congress, pp. 31–47.
Riley, J.C. (1984), ‘The Dutch Economy after 1650: Decline or Growth?,’ Journal of European Economic History, 13, pp. 521–569.
Smith, A. (1937), The Wealth of Nations, E. Cannan edition, 1904, reprinted New York, 1937.
Smits, J.P., E. Horlings and J.L. van Zanden (1997), ‘The Measurement of Gross National Product and its Components. The Netherlands, 1800–1913,’ Research Memorandum No. 1, N.W. Posthumus Institute.
Stuijvenberg, J.H. van (ed.) (1967), Bedrijf en samenleving, Alphen aan den Rijn, Samson.
Stuijvenberg, J.H. van and J.E.J. de Vrijer (1982), ‘Prices, Population and National Income in the Netherlands, 1620–1978,’ Journal of European Economic History, 11, pp. 699–711.
Sylla, R. and G. Toniolo (eds.) (1991), Patterns of European Industrialization; The Nineteenth Century, London, Routledge.
Teijl, J. (1971), ‘Nationaal inkomen van Nederland in de periode 1850–1900. Tasten en testen,’ Economisch-en Sociaal-Historisch Jaarboek, 34, pp. 232–262.
Trebilcock, C. (1981), The Industrialization of the Continental Powers, 1780–1914, London, Longman.
Vries, J. de (1981), Barges and Capitalism. Passenger Transportation in the Dutch Economy 1632–1839, Utrecht, HES.
Vries, J. de (1984), ‘The Decline and Rise of the Dutch Economy, 1675–1900,’ in: G. Saxonhouse and G. Wright (eds.), Technique Spirit and Form in the Making of the Modern Economies: Essays in Honor of William N. Parker, supplement 3, Research in Economic History, Greenwich, Conn., pp. 149–189.
Vries, J. de (1993), ‘The Labour Market,’ in: K. Davids and L. Noordegraaf (eds.), The Dutch Economy in the Golden Age. Nine Studies, Amsterdam, NEHA, 1993, pp. 55–78.
Vries, J. de, ‘Economic Growth Before and After the Industrial Revolution: A Modest Proposal,’ in: M. Prak (ed.), Early Modern Capitalism, London, Routledge (forthcoming).
Vries, J. de and A.M. van der Woude (1996), ‘De volkshuishouding van de Republiek in haar Europese context,’ Tijdschrift voor sociale geschiedenis, 22, pp. 319–326.
Vries, J. de and A.M. van der Woude (1997), The First Modern Economy. Success, Failure and Perseverance of the Dutch Economy, 1500–1815, Cambridge, Cambridge UP.
Wrigley, E.A. (1988), Continuity, Chance and Change. The Character of the Industrial Revolution in England, Cambridge, Cambridge UP.
Wrigley, E.A. and R.S. Schofield (1981), Population History of England. A Reconstruction, London, Edward Arnold.
Zanden, J.L. van (1987), ‘De economie van Holland in de periode 1650–1805: groei of achteruitgang? Een overzicht van bronnen, problemen en resultaten,’ Bijdragen en Mededelingen betreffende de Geschiedenis der Nederlanden, 102, pp. 562–609
Zanden, J.L. van (1991), Arbeid tijdens het handelskapitalisme; opkomst en neergang van de Hollandse economie, 1350–1850, Bergen, Octavo.
Zanden, J.L. van (1998), ‘An Experiment in Measurement of the Wealth of Nations. International Disparities in Agricultural Productivity and GDP Per Capita at about 1810,’ in: B. van Ark, E. Buyst, and J.L. van Zanden (eds.), Historical Benchmark Comparisons of Output and Productivity, Seville, Proceedings, XII International Economic History Congress, pp. 56–58.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
de Vries, J. Dutch Economic Growth in Comparative-Historical Perspective, 1500–2000. De Economist 148, 443–467 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004125931291
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004125931291