Description
Book SynopsisShatters the myth that traditional agricultural societies in early modern Europe were socially and economically stagnant. Through a detailed historical investigation of the peasant agriculture of ancien-regime France, this book uncovers evidence that requires an understanding of what constituted economic growth in such societies.
Trade ReviewWinner of the 1997 Gyorgy Ranki Prize, Economic History Association Winner of the 1997 Sharlin Memorial Award, Social Science History Association "One of the most important books on early modern agriculture to appear in the last two decades. This is a fine example of the cliometric revolution in economic history; it is a book upon which one can build."--Journal of Economic History "This is a very readable book... Its statistical base is constantly subjected to historical, sociological, and ethnological theory. It contains important new discoveries concerning the difficult analysis of growth in a traditional society. Above all it demonstrates the importance of bringing new methodological approaches to historical questions."--American Historical Review "For presenting this story with unprecedented detail and evidence, and, I should add, clear style and rich argument, we are indebted to Hoffman."--American Journal of Sociology "[Hoffman] offers both a new understanding of agricultural growth and a novel application of a tool of economic analysis to early modern sources... The novelty and clarity of his general argument, the richness of his documentation, and the significance of his provocative conclusions ... make this a work of great value not just to historians of early modern Europe, but to all interested in the realities of economic choices."--Jeanne Harrie, The Historian
Table of ContentsList of IllustrationsList of TablesAcknowledgmentsList of AbbreviationsIntroduction3Ch. 1Peasants, Historians, and Economic Growth12Ch. 2Common Rights and the Village Community21Ch. 3Labor Markets, Rental Markets, and Credit in the Local Economy35Ch. 4Agricultural Productivity in France, 1450-178981Ch. 5Explaining Productivity in a Traditional Economy143Ch. 6Conclusion193Appendix A: The Methods and Sources Used with the Notre Dame Sample206Appendix B: Measuring TFP with Other Samples of Leases238Appendix C: The Economics of Urban Fertilizer266Appendix D: Hedonic Wage Regressions268Notes273Sources and Bibliography345Index355
