Ancient Economy of Germany - Essay Example

? of the of the Number Macro & Micro economics Ancient European Economy: Situation of Germany This essay throws a light on the social, economic and political picture of Germany before 1000. It tries to emphasis the basic factors in the social and economic institutions that had helped Germany to develop economically over time. The growth of world economy was rapid from 1000 A.D. onwards. This essay tries to enumerate the various factors that were responsible in the progress of the economy. At the end it briefly explains the geographic extent of political control of the so named ‘state’ in the current terminology.In the history of European countries 5th and 15th century was termed as the medieval age. The western Roman empires started to collapse during this period of time and early modern age had its point of initiation from the end of this era. The phase between 5th and15th centuries is segmented into three phases; early, high and late middle age. After the collapse of the Roman Empire the provinces were under the control of barbarian invaders. Carolingian and East Francian Empires existed in Germany in the early middle ages. These dynasties were taken as the starting point of modern Germany. The institute, administration and regime in the Carolingian empire were in the court of its ruler Charlemagne. The political changes of the empire were made in the capital of Aachen in the province that had an extensive impact in the economy of German in the later ages. Historians often suspect the depth of emperor’s authority and rule. Monarchy was the system of rule when the central power and authority was in the hands of the emperor. This rule was known as Bannan; it was the right of law and charge that the emperor had over his territory (Caviness 49). The various rules of law were introduced by the king and he had complete judicial control over his provinces. The army or the defence of the province was also led by the ruler. It was the responsibility of the king to look after the underprivileged people and protect the church. People in the province were bound to be loyal to the king. The main objectives of the ruler were to systematize the sovereignty, church and cordiality around him. At the end of every norm the efficacy of the king was directly proportional to the effectiveness, support and trustworthiness of his subjects. There was an inbuilt body known as the Royal household who made sure that proper supervision was held in the localities. The count of the palace looked into the activities of the royal household. The priestly affairs of the kingdom were under the supervision of the chaplains, they had great power and importance over the people of the province. Coinage had a strong association with the Roman Empire, after the collapse of Roman administration Charlemagne took control over the coinage system with its own regulations (Bruce 67). The Carolingians exercised control over the silver coinage of the dominion by domineering its concerto and standards. The name of the king, but not its minter appeared on the silver coins. The existence of silver coins showed that the economy was rich with resources. The king concealed the mints in northern Germany on the Baltic Sea and thus kept a secret reserve of wealth hidden from rest of the world. The brief analysis of the state of affairs long back in Germany reveals that before industrial revolution the common people had no freedom over their own decisions (Duby 87). The representative of the God was the chaplains, and the representative of the chaplains was the king. The common folk had no authority over their own political, economic and social activities. The sovereignty of the people was completely under the control of the king. Catering to the above factors Germany before 1800 was a heavily rural nation. There were only a few urban trade centres across the domestic borders of Germany. A business treaty of trading cities with their gilts existed in the trading centres of Germany. The farmers lived in the villages where they formed members of a communal body, managed the community resources and monitored the life of the people in the community. In Germany there were serfs who were notably circumscribed with specific correspondence of land. In most of the areas the agricultural activities were held by the farmers who paid rents and essential services to the landlords (Duby 34). This was the period of renaissance which meant ‘rebirth’; giving an end to all the cruelties of Monarchy. Thus it can be emphasized that early Monarchical rule of Germany did not pave the way for further economic development. Power was primarily in the hands of the king who took all the economic resources under control and deprived people from their economic rights. Social and economic changes took place in Germany after the era of industrial revolution. Industrial revolution began in Germany after it had started in England. Germany did not exist as a political entity before the latter fraction of nineteenth century. The country of Germany was first created in 1870 and since then core industries were founded that lead to proper industrialization in the nation. The concept of market economy was first introduced in Prussia in 1818 and later it extended to the other states of Germany. The state governments of Germany largely promoted the construction and development of the rail system in Germany. The coalfields that were situated in the Ruhr Valley were urbanized during this period. The production of large scale of coal from the Ruhr Valley helped the nation to enjoy economies of scale in production and henceforth made Germany the best coal producer in Europe. The steel industry in Germany developed along with increased production of coal. This helped in the expansion of capital markets and banking in Germany. The progress in capital market and banking sector crowded out to the other sectors in the economy. Other industries such as electrical and chemical urbanized in the later part of nineteenth century in Germany. Over time the German chemical industry became most advanced in the world. Over the years breaking the barriers of Monarchy and poverty Germany has become the fifth largest economically progressed nation in the world. It has turned out to be the best exporter of various high tech products in Europe like machineries, vehicles, different equipments of the households and chemicals. The country has high growth in terms of GDP measured in terms of purchasing power parity. The country has a bilateral legal system giving proper rights its people. It can be analysed that industrial revolution has ultimately accelerated the growth of German economy. The period before 1000 was an epoch of inequality, unjust legal and political phase in principalities of the so now named as Germany. Early period before 1000 did not help in the economic development of Germany. The representative style assemblies were widespread in early medieval and modern Europe. It is believed that an active representative assembly helped both the habitants and the state of a country to accelerate growth and achieve better success in credit. In current economic status the world has adopted a form of mixed economic system where both the public and private sectors participates in business (Little 24). The state majorly concentrates in the welfare aspect of the nation. It invests in areas which lack private investment interests and has high gestation period for investment. Works Cited Bruce, Scott G. Ecologies and Economies in Medieval and Early Modern Europe: Studies in Environmental History. Massachusetts: BRILL, 2010. Print. Caviness, Madeline H. Visualizing Women in the middle Ages: Sight, Spectacle, and Scopic Economy. Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001. Print. Duby, Georges. Rural Economy and Country Life in the Medieval West. Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1998. Print. Read More