The industrial revolution and the democratic transition

The industrial revolution and the democratic transition. -- Aubhik Khan

In the 19th century, the United Kingdom began a period of economic transformation known as the Industrial Revolution. It’s commonly believed that this era opened as new inventions improved the technologies used to produce goods and provide services. However, we now know that such improvements affected only a relatively small part of the economy. Nonetheless, output rose during the first stage of the Industrial Revolution because of capital accumulation. One explanation for this increase in capital may be that another revolution occurred in Britain around the same time: the demographic transition. In this article, Aubhik Khan outlines some evidence on the Industrial Revolution and the demographic transition, then presents two economic theories that link the two phenomena.