Economics history questions
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Lect5f17Empires.pptxLect5 Empires
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Agrarian States
Distinction between tribute-taking states and mercantile states; tax revenues from the land or from taxes on trade; agrarian states use servile labor: slaves or serfs. Rigid class distinctions.
River- based civilizations; hydraulic society; no place to run; no peasant rights; Landes story of Balkh (p. 32)
Empires
Broad outline of history: rise and decline of empires; an empire establishes order over a large area; irrigation works are built, trade expands, ideas and techniques spread, urban population grows, and there is economic progress
But empires are fragile; why do they fall?
Empires
Many examples in history of civilized empires being overrun by nomadic barbarians; nomads might be quiet for centuries, but suddenly they get organized and they are unstoppable
What military advantages? Warrior skills of horsemanship and archery (or camels); specialized skills, long training
China
Agrarian empire of long standing; similar to empires of the fertile crescent, but with the difference of examination-based govt bureaucracy; Confucian philosophy not burdened by irrational religion
Economic flowering under Sung dynasty (960-1279); irrigation works, canals, massive iron production for kitchen utensils, arms
China
Sung dynasty; grain production largely non-market, supporting landowners and the state; massive transports of grain over canals and rivers; salt trade monopolized by govt-approved traders; some growth of market in household items and in iron itself
Trade taxes rose to 20% of govt revenue; China perhaps on road to market economy
China
Threat from steppe nomads; govt paid nearby nomads to protect them from others;
Loss of northern territory in 1125; Genghis Khan organized Mongols; Mongol invasion succeeded by 1279; much devastation of irrigation works, massive loss of population
But Chinese cities still dazzling to Marco Polo (around 1300)
China
Rule by foreign conquerors; but Mongols learned to use Chinese bureaucracy
Foreign rule inhibits social solidarity
China faced continuing problems with barbarian threats
Rise of Islam
See Marks, pp 52-55
Conquests 630-800; intense faith, skilled desert warriors; Persian and Byzantine empires had weakened each other
Common language and culture permitted increased trade and spread of knowledge from India and China
Silk and paper from China
Citrus and cotton from India
Islamic prosperity
There were courts that could register contracts and adjudicate disputes among merchants
Sufficient order was provided for trade to flourish; agriculture was productive; irrigation sophisticated
Traditional bureaucracies maintained; Coptic Christians in Egypt; Iraq, Iran well run
Rise of Islam
Government: Islam combines government and religion. Caliph is the successor to Mohammed, but in reality govt was run by military chiefs, with deference to clerics
Clerics had some political influence; they could criticize the ruler as un-Islamic and stir unrest in the population
Just two political players: no need for assembly
Islamic States from Wikipedia
Fatimid Caliphate 909-1160
Ayubbid Dynasty 1171-1260
Mamluk Sultanate 1260-1517
Ottoman Empire 1300-1908
Step Back: Questions
Why was Europe backward in 1000 CE?
Why did Europe catch up and surpass the Islamic states?
Institutional story: Political pluralism in Europe versus Sultanism in Middle East; how did these political institutions affect economic progress?
Why did pol pluralism emerge in Europe?
Islamic governments
Sultans were unconstrained by political opposition, but there were external threats and threats of palace coups
No landed aristocracy; land grants not inherited
Family lineage less important
Islam
Military prowess of desert nomads (Bedouin) and central Asian tribesmen (Turks and Mongols); Skilled horsemen (camel men) with bows and arrows; cities in Middle East were vulnerable
Conquests and new dynasties; no natural defensive barriers as in Europe; rulers often had no local roots
Islamic governments
Just two political players: no need for an assembly; what Chaney calls the Caesaro-Papist solution; sultan appointed the clerics
On occasion the clerics could limit the power of the sultans by appealing to Islamic doctrine
Prohibition of interest; wealthy people created Islamic charities (waqfs) that were protected from rulers
Islamic governments
Merchants typically had “good enough” property rights
No organizations independent of the state; no concept of the corporation, an entity that exists beyond the lives of its members
Jews and Christians were tolerated, allowed their own family law and courts; apostasy a capital offense
Islamic governments
Rulers began using slave soldiers in early 800s
Boys and young men were recruited from Caucasus region north of Black Sea and trained as soldiers loyal to the sultan
Children of these soldiers were not allowed into the army; new recruits on a continual basis; often the slaves took over; Mamluks in Egypt 1258-1517
