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Military conflict and the economic rise of urban Europe

Author

Listed:
  • Mark Dincecco

    (University of Michigan)

  • Massimiliano Onorato

    (IMT Lucca)

Abstract
"We present new city-level evidence about the military origins of Europe’s economic “backbone,” the prosperous urban belt that runs from the Low Countries to northern Italy. Military conflict was a defining feature of pre-industrial Europe. The destructive effects of warfare were worse in the countryside, leading rural inhabitants under the threat of con- flict to relocate behind urban fortifications. Conflict-related city population growth in turn had long-run economic consequences. Using GIS software, we construct a novel conflict exposure measure that computes city distances from 231 major conflicts from 1300 to 1799. We find a significant, positive, and robust relationship between conflict exposure and his- torical city population growth. Next, we use luminosity data to construct a novel measure of current city-level economic activity. We show evidence that the economic legacy of historical conflict exposure endures to the present day."

Suggested Citation

  • Mark Dincecco & Massimiliano Onorato, 2013. "Military conflict and the economic rise of urban Europe," Working Papers 14006, Economic History Society.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehs:wpaper:14006
    as

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    File URL: http://www.ehs.org.uk/dotAsset/9677294d-59dc-4d4b-a970-18ae3ad7b07a.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    conflict; city populations; historical legacy; economic development; GIS;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C20 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - General
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General
    • N40 - Economic History - - Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • N90 - Economic History - - Regional and Urban History - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • P48 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Other Economic Systems - - - Legal Institutions; Property Rights; Natural Resources; Energy; Environment; Regional Studies
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes

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