Course Description

This course examines some of the central questions of global economic history: why some nations became rich while others remained poor, and how modern patterns of economic growth and inequality emerged. It traces the long-run evolution of the world economy from the era of Malthusian constraints to the onset of sustained modern growth, focusing on the historical interactions among population dynamics, agriculture, technology, institutions, and culture. Particular attention is given to the processes that culminated in the Industrial Revolution and to the debate over the “Great Divergence” between Europe and Asia.

Adopting a comparative historical perspective, the course explores how demographic behaviour, economic incentives, and institutional structures shaped long-term development. Students engage with both qualitative historical evidence and quantitative data used in economic history. Through the analysis of major historical transformations, including changes in agriculture, population regimes, technological innovation, and global trade, the course encourages students to develop a deeper understanding of how historical processes continue to influence contemporary economic challenges. By placing global developments alongside Chinese historical experiences, the course also highlights the diverse paths through which societies have approached modern economic growth.

Course Learning Outcomes

On completing the course, students will be able to:

1. Explain the major historical processes, including demographic change, agricultural development, technological progress, cultural evolution, and institutional transformation, that shaped long-run global economic development.
2. Analyse historical sources and long-run quantitative evidence, and evaluate competing scholarly interpretations of economic and social change in Europe, China, and the wider world.
3. Compare European and Chinese developmental paths, and reflect critically on the cultural, institutional, and social differences that shaped their economic trajectories.
4. Apply historically grounded perspectives to interpret contemporary global challenges, such as inequality, gender disparities, state capacity, and sustainability, and formulate informed and responsible viewpoints on future development.
5. Develop skills of effective communication, active discussion, academic presentation.

Offer Semester and Day of Teaching

Second semester (Wed)

Study Load

Assessment: 100% coursework

Required Reading

Topic 1

• Clark, G. (2007). A farewell to alms: A brief economic history of the world. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. [Chap. 1 “Introduction: The Sixteen-Page Economic History of the World”]
• McCloskey, D. N. (1976). Does the past have useful economics? Journal of Economic Literature, 14(2), 434–461.

Topic 2 

• Broadberry, S., Guan, H., & Li, D. D. (2018). China, Europe, and the great divergence: a study in historical national accounting, 980–1850. Journal of Economic History, 78(4), 955–1000.
• Maddison, A. (2001). The world economy: a millennial perspective. Paris: OECD Development Centre. [“Introduction and Summary”; Chap 1. “The Contours of World Development”]
• Pomeranz, K. (2000). The great divergence: China, Europe, and the making of the modern world economy. Princeton: Princeton University Press. [Chap 1. “Europe before Asia? Population, Capital Accumulation, and Technology in Explanations of European Development”]

Topic 3

• Clark, G., & Cummins, N. (2015). Malthus to modernity: wealth, status, and fertility in England, 1500–1879. Journal of Population Economics, 28(1), 3–29. 
• Hu, S. (2023). Survival of the literati: Social status and reproduction in Ming–Qing China. Journal of Population Economics, 36(4), 2025–2070.
• Hu, S. (2025). Evolutionary advantage of moderate fertility during Ming–Qing China: a unified growth perspective. Journal of Economic Growth, 30(4), 497–519.
• Lee, J. Z., & Feng, W. (2001). One quarter of humanity: Malthusian mythology and Chinese realities, 1700–2000. Harvard University Press. [Chap. 1 “Introduction”; Chap. 2 “Malthusian Myths”]

Topic 4

• Allen, R. C. (1999). Tracking the agricultural revolution in England. Economic History Review, 52(2), 209–235.
• Clark, G. (2001). Farm wages and living standards in the industrial revolution: England, 1670–1869. Economic History Review, 54(3), 477–505.
  

Topic 5

• Mendels, F. F. (1972). Proto-industrialization: the first phase of the industrialization process. Journal of Economic History, 32(1), 241–261.
• Ogilvie, S. (2004). Guilds, efficiency, and social capital: evidence from German proto-industry. Economic History Review, 57(2), 286–333.

Topic 6

• De Vries, J. (1994). The industrial revolution and the industrious revolution. Journal of Economic History, 54(2), 249–270.
• Voth, H. J. (2001). The longest years: new estimates of labor input in England, 1760–1830. Journal of Economic History, 61(4), 1065–1082.

Topic 7

• Allen, R. C. (2011). Global economic history: A very short introduction. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. [Chap. 3 “The Industrial Revolution”]
• Mokyr, J. (2005). The intellectual origins of modern economic growth. The Journal of Economic History, 65(2), 285–351. 
• McCloskey, D. N. (1981). The industrial revolution 1780–1860: a survey. In R. Floud & D. N. McCloskey (Eds.), The Economic History of Britain Since 1700 (Vol. 1) (pp. 103–127). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Topic 8

• Acemoglu, D., Johnson, S., & Robinson, J. A. (2001). The colonial origins of comparative development: an instrumental variables approach. American Economic Review, 91(5), 1369–1401.
• Allen, R. C. (2011). Global economic history: A very short introduction. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. [Chap. 1 “The Great Divergence”; Chap. 2 “The rise of the West”]
• North, D.C., & Weingast, B. R. (1989). Constitutions and commitment: The evolution of institutions governing public choice in seventeenth-century England. Journal of Economic History, 49(4), 803–832.

Course Co-ordinator and Teacher(s)