EH.Net Abstracts in Economic History

                ABSTRACTS IN ECONOMIC HISTORY
                     (c) 2008 EH.Net
-----------------------------------------------------------

Name: Marc Flandreau
Email: flandreau at sciences-po.fr
Institution: Sciences Po, Paris

Co-author: none

Title: Black Man's Burden: Measured Philanthropy and the British 
Empire, 1880-1914

Internet Address of abstracted work: 
http://www.financesinternationales.sciences-po.fr/en/index.htm

By mail:

Language: English

Abstract:
Ferguson and Schularick (2006) recently provided a measure of the 
effect of Empire subjection on borrowing countries' interest rates. 
They find this effect to be large and significant, ranging between 80 
to 180 basis points. We argue that their methodology is inadequate 
and that their estimates are biased. The reason is that Empire 
subjection did not affect borrowing conditions at the margin, as they 
assume, but structurally. We also develop a new approach of the 
incidence of colonial rule on market access. It suggests that the 
benefits of Empire were unevenly distributed. It shows that the main 
incidence of colonial rule was to create financial incentives to 
adopt development policies that encouraged government spending.

Bibliography: Flandreau, Marc. "Black Man's Burden: Measured 
Philanthropy and the British Empire, 1880-1914." CEPR discussion 
paper 6811, April 2008.

Subject: H
Geographical Area: 0
Country/Region: British Empire
Time Period: 7, 8

-------------------------------------------------------
Visit the library of Abstracts in Economic History or submit your 
abstract at: http://www.eh.net/abstracts