
Spanish Agriculture
The Long Siesta, 1765-1965
James Simpson(Author)
Cambridge University Press
Published on 1. February 1996
Book
Hardback
338 pages
978-0-521-49630-8 (ISBN)
Description
Spanish Agriculture: The Long Siesta, 1765-1965, first published in 1996, is a major study in English of Spanish agrarian history. James Simpson examines how traditional agriculture responded to population growth and the integration of commodity markets, emphasising both Spain's regional variations and its context in Europe. Using statistical data as well as his wide knowledge of the recent secondary literature, Simpson argues that decisive changes in farming techniques only occurred at the start of this century. He rejects arguments that slow growth can be explained by poor resources or inefficient farmers. Indeed, farmers were quick to change when they had market opportunities, but development was interrupted by the Spanish Civil War and subsequent short-sighted government policies, only resuming in the 1950s. This comprehensive study will be of relevance to students and scholars of historical geography and agrarian history, as well as economic history.
Reviews / Votes
"Simpson's book is an important addition to the new historiography." Richard Herr, Journal of Interdisciplinary HistoryMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
71 Tables, unspecified; 15 Maps
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 157 mm
Thickness: 23 mm
Weight
641 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-521-49630-8 (9780521496308)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Growing up in the aftermath of the Video Nasties, during the late eighties and early nineties, James Simpson is from a small town in the North East of England where talking about grisly horror flicks was the norm in his school playground. For the last few years, he has written about cult cinema for several magazines and websites as well as running his own-now-defunct site: Infernal Cinema. He has interviewed horror stars Emily Booth, Barbie Wilde, and the legendary Lloyd Kaufman, amongst others, during this time. He appears in the Jason Impey documentary: VIPCO: The Untold Story. This is his first book. His favourite VIPCO movie is Spookies.
Content
1. The relative backwardness of Spanish agriculture; 2. Traditional technologies and market opportunities, 1765-1880; 3. The limits to technical change, 1880-1936; 4. Markets and institutions, 1880-1936; 5. The state and the end of traditional agriculture; 6. Spanish agriculture in a European context.