Economic historians have perennially addressed the intriguing question of comparative development, asking why some countries develop much faster and further than others. Focusing primarily on Europe between 1914 and 1939, this present volume explores the development of thirteen countries that could be said to be categorised as economically backward during this period: Albania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Turkey and Yugoslavia. These countries are linked, not only in being geographically on Europe's periphery, but all shared high...

Today the gap between rich and poor nations is larger than it has ever been in recorded history. Yet the economic hegemony of Europe was unanticipated in the 15th century when Europeans seemed no more advanced than their eastern counterparts. This collection of papers places present development problems in historical perspective, drawing on European experience to determine what characterized the growth of the world's first industrialized continent. Topics discussed in this volume include the influence of late fertility on economic development, the roots of Latin American backwardness,...

The First and Second World Wars, the great depression, oil shocks, inflation, financial crises, stock market crashes, the collapse of the Soviet command economy and Third World disasters are discussed in this comprehensive book. The contributors subject these disasters to in-depth assessment, carefully considering their costs and impact on specific countries and regions, as well as assessing them in a global context. The book examines the legacy of economic disasters and asks whether economic disasters are avoidable or whether policymakers can learn from their mistakes.