The Development of Modern Spain: An Economic History of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries: 136 (Harvard Historical Studies) - Tapa dura

The most authoritative work of its kind, by an author who knows the subject and the literature thoroughly. The Development of Modern Spain will be something of a classic for American historians, including students preparing for general examinations. -- David Landes, Harvard University In its broad scope and depth of analysis, it supersedes all other English language works on the subject...the deftness with which he ties economic events to the political frameworks within which they occur; his analysis of the disastrous effects of the autarchical policies of the 1940s is especially outstanding...Tortella combines the strengths of historian and economist in an unusually fruitful way. -- Edward Malefakis History Gabriel Tortella is the dean of modern economic history in Spain. The Development of Modern Spain represents the culmination of twenty years work by Tortella. The book is rigorously analytical and quantitative, but like all of Tortella's work it is eminently acessible to the non-economist. It is beautifully written. The book is full of new evidence and insight. Tortella's book captures an entire field of historical research and without doubt will become the standard against which all work in Spanish economic history will be judged for many, many years to come." -- John H. Coatsworth, Harvard University

This reinterpretation of the history of modern Spain from the Enlightenment to the threshold of the twenty-first century explains the surprising changes that took Spain from a backward and impoverished nation, with decades of stagnation, civil disorder, and military rule, to one of the ten most developed economies in the world. The culmination of twenty years' work by the dean of economic history in Spain, founder of the Revista de Historia Economica and recipient of the Premio Rey Juan Carlos, Spain's highest honor for an academic, the book is rigorously analytical and quantitative, but eminently accessible. It reveals views and approaches little explored until now, showing how the main stages of Spanish political history have been largely determined by economic developments and by a seldom mentioned factor: human capital formation. It is comparative throughout, and concludes by applying the lessons of Spanish history to the plight of today's developing nations.