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13 - Proximate Sources of Growth: Capital and Technology, 1700–1870

from Part II - Factors Governing Differential Outcomes in the Global Economy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 June 2021

By
Alessandro Nuvolari  and
Masayuki Tanimoto
Edited by
Stephen Broadberry  and
Kyoji Fukao
Stephen Broadberry
Affiliation:
University of Oxford
Kyoji Fukao
Affiliation:
Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo
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Summary

This chapter is concerned with two fundamental driving forces of the process of modern economic growth: capital accumulation and technical change. The importance of these factors as drivers of productivity growth underwent a major acceleration with the First Industrial Revolution. This chapter surveys the available evidence on capital accumulation since 1700 in different countries, highlighting the expansion of fixed capital. The chapter then outlines the main contours of technical advances of the First Industrial Revolution, noting the critical role played by two technological trajectories: 1) mechanization, and 2) the development of steam power technology. Finally, the chapter discusses the main sources of technical progress in this historical period, flagging some directions for further research.

Keywords

capitalinnovationinvestmentsciencesteam powermachine toolspatentslearning-by-doing
Type
Chapter
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The Cambridge Economic History of the Modern World , pp. 312 - 338
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

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