Commerce before Capitalism in Europe, 1300–1600

by Martha C. Howell

In Commerce before Capitalism in Europe, 1300–1600, Martha C. Howell challenges dominant interpretations of the relationship between the so-called commercial revolution of late medieval Europe and the capitalist age that followed. Howell argues that the merchants, shopkeepers, artisans, and consumers in cities and courts throughout Western Europe, even in the densely urbanized Low Countries that are the main focus of this study, were by no means proto-capitalist and did not consider their property a fungible asset. Even though they freely bought and sold property using sophisticated financial techniques, they preserved its capacity to secure social bonds by intensifying market regulations and by assigning new meaning to marriage, gift-giving, and consumption. Later generations have sometimes found such actions perplexing, often dismissing them as evidence that business people of the late medieval and early modern worlds did not fully understand market rules. Howell, by contrast, shows that such practices were governed by a logic specific to their age and that, however primitive they may appear to subsequent generations, these practices made Europe’s economic future possible.

Genres: History, Economics, Medieval, Nonfiction

378 pages, Paperback

First published April 12, 2010

Reviews

[Mark Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

To write a book that argues against the perception of forms of culture and economic activity before 1600 as simply 'proto-capitalist' seems daunting - but Matha Howell carries the task off with verve.

She finds fascinating detail in Northern Europe to back up her thesis - how "sumptuary laws" regulating courtly dress were an attempt to control the new fashions (wider availability of textile goods meant everyone could dress like an aristocrat) and were a reaction to the disappearance of stable and controlled displays of old privilege.

Van Eyck's famous portrait of the Arnolfini Marriage (1434) has all this new prosperity in evidence - that of a merchant class that relied more for its wealth in 'movables' (goods/chattels) and acquired possessions rather than 'patrimony' (inherited land). New patterns of consumption had arisen, but these assets were not as easily replaceable (fungible) as those of latter-day consumer capitalism.

Absorbing read backed up with excellent scholarship.

[Matthías Ólafsson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Góð greining á þessu viðfangsefni á þessu tímabli. Þessi bók slær jafnframt met í hjuts ess neðanmálsgreinum.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting look at late medieval/early modern markets, money and commerce through a cultural historian's eyes. The focus is mostly on the area now known as Belgium and the Netherlands, but excursions to other parts of Europe are made.

The author's thesis is that the economy of this place and time is not just a proto-capitalism, but rather a specific cultural phenomenon with its own logic. She looks at situations in which money is used but does not match up to modern market theory - in particular wills, marriage settlements, gifts (from patrons to clients), and sumptuary laws.

It is an interesting direction to view things from and I think it has a lot of merit. One quibble is that Howell does not address the major impact demographics had, specifically the Black Death which is known to have raised the economic standing of peasants.

[Krk · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting history of economic change in Europe, specifically the Low Countries, and how people dealt with that change both influencing and being influenced by concepts of geed, modesty, and spiritual/ earthly security.