The debate over grain in the 1750s. A cliometric point of view
Résumé
During the 1750s the grain debate agitated French opinion and contributed to the creation of the new science of political economy. It was notable as a confrontation between those who defended the regulation of commerce and partisans of free trade. In this paper we test some of the arguments made at that time, using cliometric techniques which we apply to existing data as well as to new, reconstituted data.