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Farm Labor and Power Politics: Germany, 1850–1914

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  • Tipton, Frank B.

Abstract

Understanding the political impact of economic growth requires knowledge of the timing of structural changes within a national economy. The decline of agriculture's share in the national economy and variations in regional economic structures are of particular importance. The corrected figures on farm employment discussed in Section II indicate that between 1861 and 1907 the share of agriculture in national employment in Germany declined considerably more rapidly than appears in the census results; regional shares also tended to diverge from each other and from the average throughout the period. New international competition and the thrust of urban and industrial development required regional readjustments within German agriculture. They also made it progressively more difficult for agricultural regions to compete for resources and markets without outside help. In the absence of internally generated pressure from commerce and industry, the elite in the eastern regions of Prussia opposed outside help whenever it threatened the local economic structure. The result was to increase the dependence of the region's labor for jobs on relatively declining regional industry. The response of the landowners to these changes in turn strongly influenced national political groupings. The whole experience laid a foundation for the reaction in German political life to the social discontents and economic miseries of the First World War and decades following.

Suggested Citation

  • Tipton, Frank B., 1974. "Farm Labor and Power Politics: Germany, 1850–1914," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 34(4), pages 951-979, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:34:y:1974:i:04:p:951-979_08
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    Cited by:

    1. Michael Wyrwich, 2022. "Historical episodes and their legacies across space: A famous case revisited," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(4), pages 1048-1091, September.
    2. Stuetzer, Michael & Obschonka, Martin & Audretsch, David B. & Wyrwich, Michael & Rentfrow, Peter J. & Coombes, Mike & Shaw-Taylor, Leigh & Satchell, Max, 2016. "Industry structure, entrepreneurship, and culture: An empirical analysis using historical coalfields," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 52-72.
    3. Michael Fritsch & Maria Greve & Michael Wyrwich, 2022. "The Deep Historical Roots of Industrial Culture and Regional Entrepreneurship - A case study of two regions," Jena Economics Research Papers 2022-012, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena.
    4. Baten, Jorg & Murray, John E., 2000. "Heights of Men and Women in 19th-Century Bavaria: Economic, Nutritional, and Disease Influences," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 351-369, October.
    5. Michael Wyrwich, 2017. "Woman and the labour market in East and West Germany: Socialist legacy and pre-socialist tradition," Jena Economics Research Papers 2017-015, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena.
    6. Wyrwich, Michael, 2015. "Differences in female labor force participation in East and West Germany: Socialist legacy and pre-socialist tradition," VfS Annual Conference 2015 (Muenster): Economic Development - Theory and Policy 113083, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    7. Michael Fritsch & Korneliusz Pylak & Michael Wyrwich, 2022. "Historical roots of entrepreneurship in different regional contexts—the case of Poland," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 59(1), pages 397-412, June.
    8. Wyrwich, Michael, 2019. "Women and the labour market in East and West Germany: The role of socialist legacy and pre-socialist tradition," VfS Annual Conference 2019 (Leipzig): 30 Years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall - Democracy and Market Economy 203572, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.

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