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On the Profitability of Russian Serfdom

Author

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  • Domar, Evsey D.
  • Machina, Mark J.

Abstract

The paper examines the thesis, popular among Russian Marxists, that Russian serfdom had become unprofitable for the serfowners before the emancipation of the serfs in 1861. Four theoretical models are constructed in order to determine the effects on serfdom of population growth, rise in grain prices, certain restrictions on the serfs' labor obligations, and the replacement of labor services with money payments. Prices of serfs for the several regions and provinces are estimated by regression.With the exception of Lithuania, neither the theoretical nor the empirical results confirm the Marxist hypothesis.

Suggested Citation

  • Domar, Evsey D. & Machina, Mark J., 1984. "On the Profitability of Russian Serfdom," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 44(4), pages 919-955, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:44:y:1984:i:04:p:919-955_03
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    Cited by:

    1. Suresh Naidu & Noam Yuchtman, 2011. "Coercive Contract Enforcement: Law and the Labor Market in 19th Century Industrial Britain," NBER Working Papers 17051, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Andrei Markevich & Ekaterina Zhuravskaya, 2018. "The Economic Effects of the Abolition of Serfdom: Evidence from the Russian Empire," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 108(4-5), pages 1074-1117, April.
    3. Buggle, Johannes C. & Nafziger, Steven, 2018. "The slow road from serfdom: Labor coercion and long-run development in the former Russian Empire," BOFIT Discussion Papers 22/2018, Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT).
    4. Peter Sandholt Jensen & Cristina Victoria Radu & Battista Severgnini & Paul Sharp, 2018. "The introduction of serfdom and labour markets," Working Papers 0140, European Historical Economics Society (EHES).
    5. Johannes C. Buggle & Steven Nafziger, 2021. "The Slow Road from Serfdom: Labor Coercion and Long-Run Development in the Former Russian Empire," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 103(1), pages 1-17, March.
    6. Elena Korchmina & Mikołaj Malinowski, 2024. "How extractive was Russian Serfdom? Income inequality in Moscow Province in the early 19th century," Working Papers 0266, European Historical Economics Society (EHES).
    7. Saito, Tetsuya, 2005. "Managerial Strategies of the Cotton South," MPRA Paper 181, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised Aug 2006.

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