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The Spinning Jenny and the Industrial Revolution: A Reappraisal

Author

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  • Ugo Gragnolati
  • Daniele Moschella
  • Emanuele Pugliese

Abstract

Was the spinning jenny profitable only in England? No. The present work finds that the jenny was profitable also in France. Such result contrasts recent findings on the topic by revising basic computations on the profitability of the spinning jenny.

Suggested Citation

  • Ugo Gragnolati & Daniele Moschella & Emanuele Pugliese, 2010. "The Spinning Jenny and the Industrial Revolution: A Reappraisal," LEM Papers Series 2010/09, Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM), Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy.
    • Handle: RePEc:ssa:lemwps:2010/09
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stephen Broadberry & Bishnupriya Gupta, 2009. "Lancashire, India, and shifting competitive advantage in cotton textiles, 1700–1850: the neglected role of factor prices1," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 62(2), pages 279-305, May.
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    Blog mentions

    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. Random thoughts on critiques of Allen’s theory of the Industrial Revolution
      by pseudoerasmus in Pseudoerasmus on 2016-12-02 02:35:02

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Humphries, Jane & Schneider, Benjamin, 2020. "Losing the thread: a response to Robert Allen dagger: a response to Robert Allen," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 102559, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    2. R. C. Allen & J. L. Weisdorf, 2011. "Was there an ‘industrious revolution’ before the industrial revolution? An empirical exercise for England, c. 1300–1830," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 64(3), pages 715-729, August.
    3. Morgan Kelly & Joel Mokyr & Cormac Ó Gráda, 2014. "Precocious Albion: A New Interpretation of the British Industrial Revolution," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 6(1), pages 363-389, August.
    4. Crafts, Nicholas & O’Rourke, Kevin Hjortshøj, 2014. "Twentieth Century Growth*This research has received funding from the European Research Council under the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) / ERC grant agreement no. 249546.," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 6, pages 263-346, Elsevier.
    5. Jane Humphries & Benjamin Schneider, 2019. "Wages at the Wheel: Were Spinners Part of the High Wage Economy?," Oxford Economic and Social History Working Papers _174, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    6. Jane Humphries & Benjamin Schneider, 2020. "Losing the thread: a response to Robert Allen," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(4), pages 1137-1152, November.
    7. Nicholas Crafts, 2021. "Understanding productivity growth in the industrial revolution," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 74(2), pages 309-338, May.
    8. Julio Martínez-Galarraga & Marc Prat, 2014. "Wages and prices in early Catalan industrialisation," UB School of Economics Working Papers 2014/305, University of Barcelona School of Economics.
    9. Nuvolari, Alessandro & Tortorici, Gaspare & Vasta, Michelangelo, 2023. "British-French Technology Transfer from the Revolution to Louis Philippe (1791–1844): Evidence from Patent Data," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 83(3), pages 833-873, September.
    10. Jane Humphries & Benjamin Schneider, 2019. "Spinning the industrial revolution," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 72(1), pages 126-155, February.
    11. Robert C. Allen, 2020. "Spinning their wheels: a reply to Jane Humphries and Benjamin Schneider," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(4), pages 1128-1136, November.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Industrial Revolution; choice of technique; spinning jenny;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N00 - Economic History - - General - - - General
    • N01 - Economic History - - General - - - Development of the Discipline: Historiographical; Sources and Methods
    • N70 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services - - - General, International, or Comparative

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