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Economics

Collage of pamphlet covers from the "Broadsheets on Britain: New Series No. 1 Looking Ahead" series on Britain's economy. Some titles include "Trade Expansion", "Economic Growth", "Public Spending", "Target For Growth", and "What Devaluation Means".

What's Inside

29 Collections
216 Volumes
3,715 Documents
1,143,072 Pages
Two pamphlet covers on Britain's Economy. The left side has "The National Budget 1950/51" pamphlet cover. The right side has "The Pound and Our Future" pamphlet cover with a large illustration of the £ sign.

Introduction

Many of the primary source collections published by British Online Archives (BOA) can be grouped under the broad theme of “Economics”. Put simply, "Economics" refers to the distribution of resources within and between human populations. Competing ideologies have led to the creation of very different economic systems, from free-market capitalism to state socialism. 

“Economics” relates to many different historical and geographical contexts, and intersects with other BOA themes, such as “Colonialism and Empire”, “International Relations”, “Philosophy and Religion”, and “Politics and Social Movements”.  

For instance, the collections grouped under “Economics” document the rise of the East India Company and the wider spread of British colonial rule. The collections likewise evidence the development of the transatlantic slave trade and the associated plantation economy throughout the Caribbean. They also document the growth of Liverpool, which emerged as the key British port for the transatlantic slave trade. 

The collections within this theme also illustrate the influence of Marxist thought. For example, they track the development of the British labour movement and the rise and fall of the Soviet Union. Furthermore, they chart the establishment of the new global monetary system following the Second World War, via the establishment of institutions such as the European Economic Community and the World Trade Organization.

Collections

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Painting by artist Thomas Luny in 1788 of East India Company's Ships

Licensed to access British Mercantile Trade Statistics, 1662–1809

17th Century 18th Century 19th Century Modern History Economics Europe Asia Colonialism and Empire Africa The Americas Slavery and Abolition
Contributor The National Archives (UK) Contents 4 Volumes, 146 Documents (47,662 Pages)
A black and white image of a crowd of people cheering and clapping their hands above their heads.

Licensed to access British Communism in Campaigns and Events, 1947-1991

20th Century Modern History Economics Europe Politics and Social Movements
Contributor Archive Trust of the Communist Party of Great Britain Contents 1 Volumes, 7 Documents (824 Pages)
An image of the monument to Karl Marx in Moscow city centre.

Licensed to access Marxist History and Historians in the 20th Century

20th Century Modern History Economics Europe Politics and Social Movements
Contributor Archive Trust of the Communist Party of Great Britain Contents 8 Volumes, 57 Documents (11,218 Pages)
Lady Justice statue at the Old Bailey, Central Criminal Court

Licensed to access Trade Unions in Crisis: the 1961 ETU Ballot-Rigging Scandal

20th Century Modern History Economics Europe Politics and Social Movements
Contributor Archive Trust of the Communist Party of Great Britain Contents 1 Volumes, 40 Documents (2,787 Pages)
Representatives from the Soviet Union, UK and US at the 1945 Potsdam Conference in Potsdam, Germany.

Licensed to access Establishing the Post-War International Order, 1944-1961

20th Century Modern History International Relations War, Security, and Intelligence Economics Europe Asia Africa The Americas
Contributor The National Archives Contents 14 Volumes, 1275 Documents (231,364 Pages)
An engraving of Ragged School, Whitechapel. A very large school room full of children, with a teacher at the front presiding over a wooden desk

Licensed to access British Poor Schools in the Nineteenth Century, 1812-1901

19th Century Modern History Economics Europe Culture and Society
Contributor various schools societies Contents 4 Volumes, 60 Documents (30,671 Pages)
A black and white image of Clement Attlee addressing a crowd shortly after leading Labour to victory.

Licensed to access British Labour Party Papers, 1906-1969

20th Century Modern History International Relations War, Security, and Intelligence Europe Politics and Social Movements Culture and Society The Americas
Contributor Labour History Archive and Study Centre Contents 7 Volumes, 57 Documents (6,671 Pages)
Indigenous people of the colony of British Guiana are reviewed prior to their clean up operations, Demerara Slave Revolt in British Guiana in August-September 1823.

Licensed to access Caribbean Colonial Statistics from the British Empire, 1824-1950

19th Century 20th Century Modern History Economics Europe Colonialism and Empire The Americas Slavery and Abolition
Contributor British Foreign & Commonwealth Office Contents 21 Volumes, 319 Documents (188,844 Pages)

Contextual Essays

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Guide to British Illustrated Periodicals, 1869–1970

British Online Archives
Published 3rd January, 2024 30 min read
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