84. France: The Enemy, France and the Origins of the Industrial Revolution

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This episode measures France against the 5 standard theories for the origins of the Industrial Revolution.

1. Special unique culture that accorded dignity and freedom of action to the middle classes.   This is McCloskey and Paul Slack among others.  Clear fail.

2. The production function idea that high wages drives investment in labor saving machinery which kicks off a self reinforcing cycle, that is the miracle.  The idea is associated with Robert Allen, though well developed by many.  France did not have high wages, though they did have access to and use all the english technology.  Clear fail.

3. This is the culturally neutral idea that all strive for betterment.  It is just that rapacious elites destroy incentives to betterment.  Very popular idea, very attractive, with some good dark humor embedded in it.

4. This is the idea associated with Joel Mokyr that the supply of technical skills and knowledge among the population makes invention and improvements possible and self reinforcing.  Often seen in contrast to theory 2.  Despite this being episode 84, with have less background knowledge on this theory than the others.  Still, given French high science, France is number 2, and French military engineering is superb.  This is where France does best among the theories.

5.  The kitchen sink theory.  You need all these things working for you to have the Industrial Revolution.  That's why we never had one before.  

Then we bring up some theories from historians.  And discuss for a while the idea that it was the period of Puritan/middle class rule in England after the ECW that was so important.