Real Land Rental Values in Westphalia, 16th to early 20th centuries

Basic data for this project

Description

This project aims to contribute to the modern history of agriculture and agricultural economy. We explore the development of land rental values in Westphalia, a northwestern German region, from c. 1550 until 1914. The sources used are lease contracts for single parcels of land, possessed by noble estates and leased out to peasant or smallholders handed down in estates accounts. We interpret leases as market prices for the factor land. Assuming that market prices reflect productivity growth, the leases allow us to analyse the land rental index as an index of productivity growth. First, we aim to explore, whether there has been long-term productivity growth before the 19th century. Second, the progress of productivity growth in the 19th century is analysed. Thus far we know that there was remarkable output growth between c. 1830 and 1880, based on rather intensification of labour input and presumably on improvements of rotation systems than on mechanization. By interpreting the development of real land rental values we want to explain this process in more detail in the context of agrarian reforms (redemption of feudal dues, separations), technological improvements, market integration and institutional change. Third, we analyse lease contracts from an institutional perspective. We consider leases as one contractual relationship of tilling the land among others. The share of Demesne economy, peasant land and leasehold in the entire noble economy enables us to detect strengths and shortcomings of feudal labour organisation and wage labour, family economies and large demesne economies.