In Search of Full Empirical Reality: Historical Political Economy, 1870-1900

Abstract

The notion of a 'Historical School' is burdened with numerous vague associations and overlapping uses leaving it wanting as a useful rubric of more specific research. To overcome this state of affairs, the article seeks to define and characterize the specific attributes of a historical political economy which arose in Europe between roughly 1870 and 1900. Authors from four countries are considered: Germany, Britain, France and Italy. We focus specifically on the relaionship and tension between empirical history and economic theory, thereby illustrating the resulting approach to policy. We contend that our characterization provides a useful illustration of the achievements and shortcomings of historical empiricism, inductivism, and pragmatism in economics.