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Horsemen of the apocalypse: The Mongol Empire and the great divergence

Author

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  • Rafael Torres Gaviria
Abstract
Why did the Industrial Revolution take place in Europe, but did not in India or China? This paper uses a novel dataset and builds a general model to study the economic transformations of the Late Middle Ages that led to the Industrial Revolution and the Great Divergence. Through modern econometric techniques, I exploit the Mongol Invasions of the 13th century to account for the role of violence, commerce, and technology in the structural transformations of Eurasia from the Middle Ages into the Modern Era. I show theoretically and verify empirically how the large-scale violence and new trade opportunities brought by the Mongol Empire allowed Western Europe to catch up and surpass the levels of income and technical capacity of the great Asian civilizations. Furthermore, I found that the impact of the Mongol Conquests persisted and deepened at least into the 19th century. The Mongol Invasions of the 13th century can be regarded as a fundamental cause of the Rise of Europe and the Decline of Asia. Moreover, the rise and fall of the Mongol Empire is a key event in understanding the transition from a Malthusian world into a world of sustained economic growth and inter-regional inequality.

Suggested Citation

  • Rafael Torres Gaviria, 2022. "Horsemen of the apocalypse: The Mongol Empire and the great divergence," Documentos CEDE 20533, Universidad de los Andes, Facultad de Economía, CEDE.
    • Handle: RePEc:col:000089:020533
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    File URL: https://repositorio.uniandes.edu.co/bitstream/handle/1992/63081/dcede2022-43.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Mongol Empire; Great Divergence; Industrial Revolution; Growth; Trade; Violence; Technology transfer;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C02 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - General - - - Mathematical Economics
    • N3 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy
    • N4 - Economic History - - Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation
    • N7 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services
    • O14 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Industrialization; Manufacturing and Service Industries; Choice of Technology
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • O47 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Empirical Studies of Economic Growth; Aggregate Productivity; Cross-Country Output Convergence

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