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Commercial Revolution in the Middle Ages
Professor Robert Lopez provides an incisive analysis of the economic structure of the Middle Ages. He makes use of modern economic concepts to explain how an underdeveloped economic system gave birth to the commercial revolution through which Europe succeeded in developing itself. The book goes far beyond the familiar picture of medieval European society, with its magnificent cathedrals and imposing castles, to concentrate instead on the walled cities and open countryside, for it was here that the revolution was born. Deftly and concisely, Professor Lopez traces the history of this remarkable economic upheaval which saw the rise of merchants and craftsmen and the decline of agricultural dependence by the society.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1971
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About the author
Robert Sabatino Lopez
14 books7 followersItalian born historian who emigrated to the United States in 1939. His work focused on issues of trade and commerce in the middle ages.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 30, 2013
Let's get this out of the way: I know almost nothing about economics, past or present. I think of myself as a fairly intelligent person most of the time, but as soon as I hear talk of interest rates or banking practices, I tend to glaze over a bit. I know that it's terribly important, especially for the medieval period that I most enjoy, but getting me to genuinely enjoy a work of economic history is a bit of an uphill battle. And even when I do enjoy it, I feel rather unqualified to comment on its accuracy. Lopez certainly makes a good case, and its clearly articulated. There are unfortunately no footnotes, so you'll be largely on your own if you'd like to explore further.
In broad strokes, Lopez makes the argument that the period from 950-1350 constituted a commercial revolution and "preindustrial rise" that was not necessarily notable for its quantitative changes in the economy - both before and after, the vast majority farmed - but for its irrevocable qualitative changes. The Roman and post-Roman economies were rural and conservative, and mercantile activity tended to be frowned upon as lacking in class. Life was essentially at subsistence level, with local exchanges and minimal regional trade. By 750-950, however, a change slowly developed: people expanded in number and cleared new land, resulting in a higher surplus of crops. Adventurous Italian communes - particularly Venice - began to tilt toward more commercial enterprises. The weather improved. Several generations of this trend snowballed, until a different economy emerged: one that was still agricultural, but which was spurred on to new heights by commercial development. The European economy was definitively different by 1100 or so, as Italian cities sent out merchant fleets armed with the new weapons of credit, insurance, and coins. Trade expanded dramatically on a geographic scale, particularly as northern Europe was connected to the east by the powerful merchant fleets of Venice and Genoa. The new trade spilled over into the spheres of agriculture and industry as well, particularly in the rapidly expanding textile production centers of Flanders and Florence. This revolution was only stymied by the 14th century calamities of endemic warfare, plague, and a cooling climate.
In a lot of ways, Lopez's work is the ideal economic history for people who are not economic historians. It's briskly paced and it manages to hit just the right balance between sharing a reverence and fascination towards the material aspects of the past without diving headlong into 70 pages on the silver content in medieval coinage. It's a wonderfully tangible book at times, and as Lopez jumps around through the centuries and the regions you can really imagine the cloth, the mines, the furrows and the the ships. Medieval commerce was the stuff of absolute adventures, and Lopez conveys that in a way that often lacking in more stodgy economic accounts. I'm not quite sure what an expert would make of it, but it functions as an excellent intro to a relative beginner.
In broad strokes, Lopez makes the argument that the period from 950-1350 constituted a commercial revolution and "preindustrial rise" that was not necessarily notable for its quantitative changes in the economy - both before and after, the vast majority farmed - but for its irrevocable qualitative changes. The Roman and post-Roman economies were rural and conservative, and mercantile activity tended to be frowned upon as lacking in class. Life was essentially at subsistence level, with local exchanges and minimal regional trade. By 750-950, however, a change slowly developed: people expanded in number and cleared new land, resulting in a higher surplus of crops. Adventurous Italian communes - particularly Venice - began to tilt toward more commercial enterprises. The weather improved. Several generations of this trend snowballed, until a different economy emerged: one that was still agricultural, but which was spurred on to new heights by commercial development. The European economy was definitively different by 1100 or so, as Italian cities sent out merchant fleets armed with the new weapons of credit, insurance, and coins. Trade expanded dramatically on a geographic scale, particularly as northern Europe was connected to the east by the powerful merchant fleets of Venice and Genoa. The new trade spilled over into the spheres of agriculture and industry as well, particularly in the rapidly expanding textile production centers of Flanders and Florence. This revolution was only stymied by the 14th century calamities of endemic warfare, plague, and a cooling climate.
In a lot of ways, Lopez's work is the ideal economic history for people who are not economic historians. It's briskly paced and it manages to hit just the right balance between sharing a reverence and fascination towards the material aspects of the past without diving headlong into 70 pages on the silver content in medieval coinage. It's a wonderfully tangible book at times, and as Lopez jumps around through the centuries and the regions you can really imagine the cloth, the mines, the furrows and the the ships. Medieval commerce was the stuff of absolute adventures, and Lopez conveys that in a way that often lacking in more stodgy economic accounts. I'm not quite sure what an expert would make of it, but it functions as an excellent intro to a relative beginner.
August 24, 2022
Arguing that there was a commercial revolution in medieval western Europe in the four centuries before the Black Death is similar to suggesting that there was a Carolingian or a twelfth century renaissance or that there was an age of feudalism, in that the historian is attempting to apply a systematic explanatory framework to discrete events over a defined period of time so as to propound a thesis which will reveal historical development, and such as will explain these events as being within and encompassing a definable, distinct period of change. The question is, therefore, does Robert Lopez succeed in justifying his claim that the period 950 to 1350 marked such a period of change in western Europe that can be termed a commercial revolution?
Lopez begins with a survey of the economic history of, firstly, late antiquity, and, then, the early medieval period, before turning to the four hundred years which constitutes his commercial revolution. He successfully establishes how the Roman empire was limited in its commercial development by social factors which disparaged the value of trade in a society which was preponderantly agricultural and based upon slave labour, and where elites spent their surplus upon luxuries and the acquisition of landed estates. From its peak in the second century, he then charts imperial decline as Rome became overextended in its military commitments and in the West was unable to resist the pressures of migration from without and the weakness of endemic plague within, until the western empire itself succumbed to barbarian invasions during the fifth century, leading to a prolonged period of depopulation and de-urbanisation in the early medieval age of migrations.
From this, Lopez then seeks to explain how from this low base of dispersed, localised rural settlement and limited trade the commercial revolution grew, basing his argument on two main factors of continuing demographic growth and technological advances, which caused improved per capita crop yields, the reason for which was primarily climatic through what has come to be known as the medieval warming period. It was this greater population, increased surplus above subsistence, and higher real incomes and prices, which Lopez argues provided the circumstances which made possible the commercialisation of 950-1350. This poses the question as to whether this did indeed constitute a revolution, or whether it was more a development of the existing agricultural economy within which commercialisation remained an adjunct and which was as much a product of as contributor to improved agricultural efficiency?
What Lopez charts is a process of greater urbanisation and the development of trading networks between what he calls the two Mediterraneans, that is the traditional Mediterranean world around the southern sea, in which Italy takes the lead, and a northern Mediterranean consisting of the Germanic peoples north of the Alps with links through the Baltic, the North Sea and Channel, and the Atlantic coast down towards Iberia, and which through the growing trading links between these two areas led to the creation of a definite European shared identity within high medieval western Christendom, connected by a shared Catholic identity under papal authority and increasingly interconnected by commerce. In this sense, his argument is that it was the commercial revolution which brought about the birth of a recognisable European identity after 950. For Lopez then, this realisation of an identifiable Europe between the tenth and fourteenth centuries is primarily the fruit of the economic changes he identifies as constituting his commercial revolution, but in so doing he downplays political factors such as administrative reform and centralisation, both secular and papal, or the structural effects from Byzantine retrenchment and Arab-Islamic consolidation upon western Europe, or the rise of the Mongol empire, which while facilitating European trade with Asia, diminished the competitive threat from both Constantinople and Islamic expansionism, permitting Catholic Europe to gain both a competitive advantage, allowing it to overtake its near rivals, and for a more homogenised Europe to emerge from the fusion of Germanic peoples and the remainders of the classical inheritance during an age when not only was western Europe free from attack but was also able to aggressively seek to expand into the Near East and North Africa through crusading. There were geopolitical factors which favoured the development of medieval Europe, and at a time of population growth and more efficient agricultural production, it was these which led to a society, whose economy both in antiquity and the age of migrations was primarily subsistence, evolving into one where surpluses allowed opportunities for commercial expansion. As such, if there was a commercial revolution, it was less a cause than an effect of profound historical development within a still predominantly land-based and agricultural society, which peaked in the thirteenth century and came to an end as overpopulation and diminishing returns in the early fourteenth century brought about a plateauing in growth, before coming to a crash with the Black Death in 1348, whose profound effects through depopulation and economic and social reconfiguration were to provide the basis for the emergence of the late medieval societies and nation states from which the modern world would grow.
Lopez explores both the growth of trade and cities and the early development of banking and credit, including the vital advances provided by double entry bookkeeping and bills of exchange, and while these certainly contributed to facilitating long distance trade and financial expansion, he does not satisfactorily show that what might at best be regarded as a high medieval financial revolution actually transformed Europe in such a way as to constitute his commercial revolution. This was because not only was western European society still primarily agricultural, with power and wealth based upon possession of land, but that the technological advances in crop rotation and ploughing, which raised efficiency back to classical Roman levels of a crop to seed ratio of four to one, proceeded more from organic improvements within farming communities and not directly from access to credit and outside finance. It was not so much that financial and commercial developments spurred this considerable improvement in both agricultural output and productivity, but more that they benefited from them and the surpluses produced so as to make commercial transactions and trade more lucrative as both population, and hence demand, and prices grew at a time without scarcity or underemployment. Hence, it remains most likely that it was demographic growth which fueled the development of western Europe between 950 and 1350 during an age of warming climate and reduced epidemic prevalence, and why this long period of gradual growth came to a shuddering halt with the onset of the Black Death. The commercial development of Europe was but one part of this era of demographic and price growth, but as it did not lead to the full development of capitalism, which required both agricultural and industrial revolutions driven by technological advances, it cannot really be considered a revolution. However, Lopez in this short survey of a time of change does make a valiant attempt to explain the emergence of western Europe during the high medieval period, even if his overriding hypothesis remains unproven, since even at its height in the later thirteenth century Europe never approached becoming a commercial society.
Lopez begins with a survey of the economic history of, firstly, late antiquity, and, then, the early medieval period, before turning to the four hundred years which constitutes his commercial revolution. He successfully establishes how the Roman empire was limited in its commercial development by social factors which disparaged the value of trade in a society which was preponderantly agricultural and based upon slave labour, and where elites spent their surplus upon luxuries and the acquisition of landed estates. From its peak in the second century, he then charts imperial decline as Rome became overextended in its military commitments and in the West was unable to resist the pressures of migration from without and the weakness of endemic plague within, until the western empire itself succumbed to barbarian invasions during the fifth century, leading to a prolonged period of depopulation and de-urbanisation in the early medieval age of migrations.
From this, Lopez then seeks to explain how from this low base of dispersed, localised rural settlement and limited trade the commercial revolution grew, basing his argument on two main factors of continuing demographic growth and technological advances, which caused improved per capita crop yields, the reason for which was primarily climatic through what has come to be known as the medieval warming period. It was this greater population, increased surplus above subsistence, and higher real incomes and prices, which Lopez argues provided the circumstances which made possible the commercialisation of 950-1350. This poses the question as to whether this did indeed constitute a revolution, or whether it was more a development of the existing agricultural economy within which commercialisation remained an adjunct and which was as much a product of as contributor to improved agricultural efficiency?
What Lopez charts is a process of greater urbanisation and the development of trading networks between what he calls the two Mediterraneans, that is the traditional Mediterranean world around the southern sea, in which Italy takes the lead, and a northern Mediterranean consisting of the Germanic peoples north of the Alps with links through the Baltic, the North Sea and Channel, and the Atlantic coast down towards Iberia, and which through the growing trading links between these two areas led to the creation of a definite European shared identity within high medieval western Christendom, connected by a shared Catholic identity under papal authority and increasingly interconnected by commerce. In this sense, his argument is that it was the commercial revolution which brought about the birth of a recognisable European identity after 950. For Lopez then, this realisation of an identifiable Europe between the tenth and fourteenth centuries is primarily the fruit of the economic changes he identifies as constituting his commercial revolution, but in so doing he downplays political factors such as administrative reform and centralisation, both secular and papal, or the structural effects from Byzantine retrenchment and Arab-Islamic consolidation upon western Europe, or the rise of the Mongol empire, which while facilitating European trade with Asia, diminished the competitive threat from both Constantinople and Islamic expansionism, permitting Catholic Europe to gain both a competitive advantage, allowing it to overtake its near rivals, and for a more homogenised Europe to emerge from the fusion of Germanic peoples and the remainders of the classical inheritance during an age when not only was western Europe free from attack but was also able to aggressively seek to expand into the Near East and North Africa through crusading. There were geopolitical factors which favoured the development of medieval Europe, and at a time of population growth and more efficient agricultural production, it was these which led to a society, whose economy both in antiquity and the age of migrations was primarily subsistence, evolving into one where surpluses allowed opportunities for commercial expansion. As such, if there was a commercial revolution, it was less a cause than an effect of profound historical development within a still predominantly land-based and agricultural society, which peaked in the thirteenth century and came to an end as overpopulation and diminishing returns in the early fourteenth century brought about a plateauing in growth, before coming to a crash with the Black Death in 1348, whose profound effects through depopulation and economic and social reconfiguration were to provide the basis for the emergence of the late medieval societies and nation states from which the modern world would grow.
Lopez explores both the growth of trade and cities and the early development of banking and credit, including the vital advances provided by double entry bookkeeping and bills of exchange, and while these certainly contributed to facilitating long distance trade and financial expansion, he does not satisfactorily show that what might at best be regarded as a high medieval financial revolution actually transformed Europe in such a way as to constitute his commercial revolution. This was because not only was western European society still primarily agricultural, with power and wealth based upon possession of land, but that the technological advances in crop rotation and ploughing, which raised efficiency back to classical Roman levels of a crop to seed ratio of four to one, proceeded more from organic improvements within farming communities and not directly from access to credit and outside finance. It was not so much that financial and commercial developments spurred this considerable improvement in both agricultural output and productivity, but more that they benefited from them and the surpluses produced so as to make commercial transactions and trade more lucrative as both population, and hence demand, and prices grew at a time without scarcity or underemployment. Hence, it remains most likely that it was demographic growth which fueled the development of western Europe between 950 and 1350 during an age of warming climate and reduced epidemic prevalence, and why this long period of gradual growth came to a shuddering halt with the onset of the Black Death. The commercial development of Europe was but one part of this era of demographic and price growth, but as it did not lead to the full development of capitalism, which required both agricultural and industrial revolutions driven by technological advances, it cannot really be considered a revolution. However, Lopez in this short survey of a time of change does make a valiant attempt to explain the emergence of western Europe during the high medieval period, even if his overriding hypothesis remains unproven, since even at its height in the later thirteenth century Europe never approached becoming a commercial society.
December 26, 2024
4.5 rounded up.
A fantastic panoramic view of the development of mercantile and industrial contradictions during the Middle Ages.
I'll be coming back to this again as a reference. It was really interesting to see the accidental and geographic factors that led to the Italian bourgeoisie racing ahead of the rest of Europe.
It was also helpful to see clearly explained how the European surge in commerce, driven by increased agricultural surplus, hit the barrier of a ruling class whose interests were entirely opposed to those of the urban classes.
One particularly interesting observation from reading this book is the distinction between Byzantine and Islamic cities, which were based on the trade of luxury goods, and European cities, which focused on heavier industry - mining, forestry, etc. Italy developed as the trade hub between these two spheres of production. I will need to explore this further, but the book offers an intriguing insight into how the East fell behind the West in the development of capitalism. The large-scale trade of numerous small commodities would have provided a far more expansive and dominant economic power than the smaller-scale trade of luxury commodities. Furthermore, the search for raw materials and competitive advantage likely spurred a drive for new markets and new methods. Despite the fact that Byzantium and the Islamic caliphates were far more advanced cultures, this points to why they stagnated while Europe surged ahead. I’ll need to read more to confirm this theory!
The book loses half a star for placing commerce and external factors above production and internal contradictions in societal development. That said, the author is a materialist rather than an idealist, so there's nothing glaringly wrong as far as I can tell.
A fantastic panoramic view of the development of mercantile and industrial contradictions during the Middle Ages.
I'll be coming back to this again as a reference. It was really interesting to see the accidental and geographic factors that led to the Italian bourgeoisie racing ahead of the rest of Europe.
It was also helpful to see clearly explained how the European surge in commerce, driven by increased agricultural surplus, hit the barrier of a ruling class whose interests were entirely opposed to those of the urban classes.
One particularly interesting observation from reading this book is the distinction between Byzantine and Islamic cities, which were based on the trade of luxury goods, and European cities, which focused on heavier industry - mining, forestry, etc. Italy developed as the trade hub between these two spheres of production. I will need to explore this further, but the book offers an intriguing insight into how the East fell behind the West in the development of capitalism. The large-scale trade of numerous small commodities would have provided a far more expansive and dominant economic power than the smaller-scale trade of luxury commodities. Furthermore, the search for raw materials and competitive advantage likely spurred a drive for new markets and new methods. Despite the fact that Byzantium and the Islamic caliphates were far more advanced cultures, this points to why they stagnated while Europe surged ahead. I’ll need to read more to confirm this theory!
The book loses half a star for placing commerce and external factors above production and internal contradictions in societal development. That said, the author is a materialist rather than an idealist, so there's nothing glaringly wrong as far as I can tell.
December 21, 2023
A relatively simple overview of the Commercial Revolution. A little too simple for anyone who is familiar with the Commercial Revolution. I've also been reading a lot about the development of European commerce and that transitional period between antiquity and the Middle Ages which this book deals with so maybe it's that. He does, at the very least, explain how historical conditions permitted for the Commercial Revolution. He does this well and clear.
Historians aren't ever great economists and he's really isn't able to demonstrate the function of entrepreneurs and commerce too well other than 'they did double-entry bookkeeping', and 'they had capital and shared risks', 'oh and they had credit!' None of it was particularly compelling, maybe since we take these things for granted. Though I suppose it's understandable given the short length of the book.
There's a recommended reading at the back of the book which looks promising, but I haven't checked it out yet.
Historians aren't ever great economists and he's really isn't able to demonstrate the function of entrepreneurs and commerce too well other than 'they did double-entry bookkeeping', and 'they had capital and shared risks', 'oh and they had credit!' None of it was particularly compelling, maybe since we take these things for granted. Though I suppose it's understandable given the short length of the book.
There's a recommended reading at the back of the book which looks promising, but I haven't checked it out yet.
January 21, 2020
This book I read for my history class and did a report on! I thought for the purpose it stood, of education, it was extremely helpful and in depth. I really appreciated how it made points throughout the book to build up to its main thesis. Each reason given as to how the commercial revolution occurred and where it came from was clearly written and explained thoroughly. Although some of the writing felt dry, it did a great job making me familiar with the ins and outs of the commercial revolution and lead me to feel confident on the essay I wrote and the explanations I gave for it.
May 23, 2020
Excellent overview of Western European economic development from the tenth century to the Black Death, by and large a time of economic growth. Its principal strengths are its brevity, the author's ability to write well, and his obvious deep knowledge of the subject. Its only drawback is its age - it was written 50 years ago so some of the bolder statements have not aged as well as others.
August 4, 2023
Excellent in so many ways except Lopez doesn't make explore the Chinese source of the technological imports which which boosted European economies. The first volume of Joseph Needham's Science and Civilisation in China was published in 1954 so it would seem Lopez would have known about it. Anyway, there is a lot in this short and oft-cited book.
July 2, 2023
An exceptionally readable book, accessible to the layman, and dispelling a lot of the misconceptions regarding the Middle Ages.
January 7, 2024
assignment
May 16, 2016
The strength of the book is not in the content, but in the writing. Lopez writes with a very clear style that is easily digestible. He is not writing as an academician for academicians. Rather, this book is available for mass market readers. The style includes breaking down each chapter into manageable subsections of around ten pages. The result is a clear and concise narrative that is designed for lith reading.
There not much of a thesis. Lopez dives early on in the book into the imploding world of Late Antiquity. In this readers can recognize Henri Pirenne's style of arm chair scholarship - good, clear narrative with minimal references. Beginning in the 1990s, academics began challenging Pirenne's theories on commerce and trade. The present book appears to embrace them.
The crux of the book is that farmers produced agriculture mostly for subsistence farming. The system went through periods of weak markets (good harvests) and strong markets (bad harvests) at odd intervals for much of European history. The stress and corruption of the Roman Empire led to the farmers seemingly embracing new barbarian governments. During much of the Dark Ages, life went on, until changes in commerce, specifically credit and double-entry bookkeeping, allowed for the steady accumulation and sale of surplus agriculture. This in turn allowed cities to grow ever larger, and the engines of industry kicked in.
Towards the end of his book, Lopez postulates that this commercial revolution ended with the massive upheavals of the 14th Century. Near constant war, plague, and climate change wrecked havoc on trade and brought commerce to a halt. He does not spend much time discussing each of these items. It is one of the earliest works I have read that blames climate change in the 14th Century for a decrease in trade. However, since he mentions this only in the conclusion, it is difficult to get excited. Most academicians wag their fingers at students who introduce unsubstantiated theses in their conclusions.
Overall, it is a good book. Lopez covers some difficult areas in his work such as the development of credit, double-entry bookkeeping, the rise of communes, and merchant dynasties, while keeping everything interconnected and building upon each chapter and sub-chapter. The clarity of his writing is exceptional, even if his arguments have been countered by modern authors. Anyone interested in how Western Europe escaped the Dark Ages, should read this book.
There not much of a thesis. Lopez dives early on in the book into the imploding world of Late Antiquity. In this readers can recognize Henri Pirenne's style of arm chair scholarship - good, clear narrative with minimal references. Beginning in the 1990s, academics began challenging Pirenne's theories on commerce and trade. The present book appears to embrace them.
The crux of the book is that farmers produced agriculture mostly for subsistence farming. The system went through periods of weak markets (good harvests) and strong markets (bad harvests) at odd intervals for much of European history. The stress and corruption of the Roman Empire led to the farmers seemingly embracing new barbarian governments. During much of the Dark Ages, life went on, until changes in commerce, specifically credit and double-entry bookkeeping, allowed for the steady accumulation and sale of surplus agriculture. This in turn allowed cities to grow ever larger, and the engines of industry kicked in.
Towards the end of his book, Lopez postulates that this commercial revolution ended with the massive upheavals of the 14th Century. Near constant war, plague, and climate change wrecked havoc on trade and brought commerce to a halt. He does not spend much time discussing each of these items. It is one of the earliest works I have read that blames climate change in the 14th Century for a decrease in trade. However, since he mentions this only in the conclusion, it is difficult to get excited. Most academicians wag their fingers at students who introduce unsubstantiated theses in their conclusions.
Overall, it is a good book. Lopez covers some difficult areas in his work such as the development of credit, double-entry bookkeeping, the rise of communes, and merchant dynasties, while keeping everything interconnected and building upon each chapter and sub-chapter. The clarity of his writing is exceptional, even if his arguments have been countered by modern authors. Anyone interested in how Western Europe escaped the Dark Ages, should read this book.
Read
September 27, 2015Presents the traditional (note the publication date) narrative of the emergence of the medieval economy. While the model presented here has been critiqued extensively since the publication of the volume, it is still useful and a worthwhile read for those interested in not only history, but also historiography.
December 9, 2013
Interesting history marred by frequently turgid writing and a lack of modern citations. It would be difficult to verify Lopez's claims, though none seem particularly outlandish. The vignette on the Italian adventurer and alum merchant is a treat.
April 30, 2010
Old school.
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