Marshall: Reflection from the Age of Historical School

Abstract

English classical economics enjoyed supreme authority during England's reign as ‘the workshop of the world’, which generated Anglo-centric chauvinism and insularity. Against this background emerged a ‘new cohort of economists’ —Leslie, Bagehot, Jevons— who all rejected ‘the Ricardo-Mill Economics.’ Marshall was almost as critical as had been the historical critics, and he did much to further ‘the loss of insularity.’ He highly regarded the German Historical School, in particular, Friedrich List. Marshall was as concerned about the decline of English industrial leadership as were Ashley and Chamberlain. However, he wrote that ‘the simplicity and naturalness of Free Trade’ remained ‘the best’, and diametrically opposed to the minority report on the Depression of Trade and Industry.