The Consequences of Radical Reform: The French Revolution / Daron Acemoglu, Davide Cantoni, Simon Johnson, James A. Robinson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Acemoglu, Daron.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Cantoni, Davide.

Johnson, Simon.

Robinson, James A.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w14831.

NBER working paper series no. w14831

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Other Title:

The Consequences of Radical Reform

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2009.

Summary:

The French Revolution of 1789 had a momentous impact on neighboring countries. The French Revolutionary armies during the 1790s and later under Napoleon invaded and controlled large parts of Europe. Together with invasion came various radical institutional changes. French invasion removed the legal and economic barriers that had protected the nobility, clergy, guilds, and urban oligarchies and established the principle of equality before the law. The evidence suggests that areas that were occupied by the French and that underwent radical institutional reform experienced more rapid urbanization and economic growth, especially after 1850. There is no evidence of a negative effect of French invasion. Our interpretation is that the Revolution destroyed (the institutional underpinnings of) the power of oligarchies and elites opposed to economic change; combined with the arrival of new economic and industrial opportunities in the second half of the 19th century, this helped pave the way for future economic growth. The evidence does not provide any support for several other views, most notably, that evolved institutions are inherently superior to those 'designed'; that institutions must be 'appropriate' and cannot be 'transplanted'; and that the civil code and other French institutions have adverse economic effects.

Notes:

Print version record

April 2009.