The Glorious Revolution, Economic Institutions and the Developing World

Abstract

This paper critically examines the relative merits of New Institutional Economics (NIE, hereafter) versus the critical institutionalist method of institutional analysis. The paper sketches how the Glorious Revolution, a seminal event in British economic and political history, has been analyzed by NIE. Using material from both economics and political science, this paper argues that the NIE analysis, in general, and that of the Glorious Revolution, in particular, shows a considerable amount of theoretical weakness. Instead, the paper forwards the critical institutionalist method to present a comprehensive institutional analysis of the Glorious Revolution. The paper also underscores the changing nature of resource distribution and culture in Britain as key variables. Finally, the paper also highlights the role of the “Whigs” as key agents in bringing about the events associated with the Glorious Revolution.