The economy of sixteenth century England

Abstract That the sixteenth century marked the beginning of a watershed in English economic history has long been recognized by both economists and historians. Characterized by a variety of economic revolutions, it is widely accepted as having been the transition period between the decline of the medieval world and the rise of the modem world. Among the many issues confronted by those who have examined this century, a great deal of thought has been given to explaining the occurrence of what is considered a dramatic decline in real wages and a significant shift in the terms of trade between agriculture and industry. The effort would seem to be justified. Given the direction and magnitude of these events, any furtherance of our understanding of their causes would provide insights into the more general issues of the efficiency of resource allocation, the distribution of income, and the accumulation of wealth over the course of the century.