Britain's Prime and Britain's Decline

To a nation accustomed to look upon itself as the world's leading economic power, the last three decades of the ninenteenth century brought unwelcome and ominous signs of change. The British economy appeared to be losing its momentum and a number of other economies not only caught up with but in some areas, moved ahead of Britain as far as technical innovation was concerned and captured greater shares of the world's market. Sidney Pollard attempts to answer the question "Did Britain's economy experience a decline between 1870 and 1914?" by a rigorous analysis of the economic, social and political elements relevant to the debate. He focuses attention on investment abroad, the development of science and technology, and the role of the state. The book presents an array of evidence and offers both summaries of the work of others and novel interpretations of its own.