Economic History of France

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Economic History of France

Medieval France: The collapse of the previously powerful Roman Empire ravaged the French economy. For example, international trade and urban life declined significantly (Barisheff 102).

Carolingian age: New crops, favorable weather conditions and improvement in farming practices led to increase in agricultural production.

High middle age: Agricultural production continued to grow, leading to the expansion of cities such as Paris.

1335 – 1450: France, like most of Europe, was severely affected by plagues and wars of the time. The country suffered an economic downturn for most of this period. Numerous bad harvest were also witnessed.

1460s to 1500s: This was the era of the Renaissance. France went through a lot of industrialization during this period. The printing, metallurgy and mineral mining industries grew rapidly in these years. To facilitate foreign trade, France signed pacts with other countries, opened up sea ports and hosted market fairs. There was also an increase in good consumption.

1600s-1700s: King Henry IV introduced monetary reforms such as better coinage, tax reduction and reduction in public debt. Later this century, France would adopt a mercantile system that used state-sponsored manufacturing and protectionism to foster production of luxury goods.

1700s-late 1700s: The mining, textiles and metallurgy continued to grow. There was also mechanization of agriculture, creation of factories and formation of monopolies (Nye 78).

Late 1700s-1900s: This was the time of the French Revolution. The revolutionists introduced a freer economy as they moved away from state control of the economy. However, the rate of inflation grew tremendously. This was reduced only after Napoleon introduced the Franc as the national currency. For many years during this period, Napoleon was at war with many other countries. To facilitate these wars, he nationalized public resources, raised...