Ernest Labrousse
Encyclopedia
Camille-Ernest Labrousse (Barbezieux, Poitou-Charente, 1895–1988) was a French historian
specializing in social and economic history.
Labrousse established a historical model centered on three nodes—economic, social and cultural—inventing the quantitative history sometimes now called "cliometrics
". Eschewing biographies and the narrative accounts of individual witnesses, which have provided the backbone of traditional historiography
, he applied statistical methods and influenced a whole generation. Fernand Braudel
said that if it were not for Labrousse, "historians would never have set to work as willingly as they did on the study of wages and prices". Labrousse's prominence was also a result of his post at the Sorbonne
, where he supervised a generation of French post-doctoral thèses and his organizational skills from the 1950s onwards in leading team research efforts that were models of the historian's craft.
His first great work was his Esquisse du mouvement des prix et des revenus en France au XVIIIe siècle ("Sketch of the movement of prices and revenues in France during the 18th century"), 1932, the result of his law dissertation under the direction of Albert Aftalion. It synthesizes several data series on prices of food and manufactures, on incomes, including the inflationary rise in land rents, and on lagging wages over the course of the century, as part of the interplay between economic trends and class frictions that led ultimately to revolution.
Labrousse's own work concentrated on eighteenth and nineteenth-century France, but his constant concern for working methods that could be expanded beyond his subjects at hand to inspect other parts of the early modern world and the world that was transformed by the Industrial Revolution
, is exemplified in the range of studies in the hommage of his pupils and their pupils that was edited by Braudel and others, Conjoncture économique, structures sociales (Paris 1974). The "Labrousse model" of the subsistence crisis in the preindustrial grain-and-textiles economy of France and its effect in precipitating the French Revolution
, detailed in the second of his two magisterial works, La Crise de l’économie française (1943), which Fernand Braudel called "the greatest work of history to have appeared in France in the course of the last twenty-five years." has especially wide application, though his paradigm
has been adjusted by subsequent studies that have reintroduced complexities.
Labrousse, whose early background was in progressive political activism, was not strictly a member of the Annales School
of historians, who were too influenced by the preconceptions of Marxist historiography
to satisfy him, but he collaborated in their efforts to create a new human history centered in historical demography
. In 1948 he chaired a celebrated conference inquiring into "how revolutions are born," focusing on the French revolutions of 1789, 1830 and 1848, and applying to them his social, economic and political methodology. In 1979 he received the Balzan Prize
for History (ex aequo with Giuseppe Tucci
).
Labrousse had begun as a student of François Simiand
.
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
specializing in social and economic history.
Labrousse established a historical model centered on three nodes—economic, social and cultural—inventing the quantitative history sometimes now called "cliometrics
Cliometrics
Cliometrics, sometimes called new economic history, or econometric history, is the systematic application of economic theory, econometric techniques, and other formal or mathematical methods to the study of history . It is a quantitative approach to economic history...
". Eschewing biographies and the narrative accounts of individual witnesses, which have provided the backbone of traditional historiography
Historiography
Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...
, he applied statistical methods and influenced a whole generation. Fernand Braudel
Fernand Braudel
Fernand Braudel was a French historian and a leader of the Annales School. His scholarship focused on three main projects, each representing several decades of intense study: The Mediterranean , Civilization and Capitalism , and the unfinished Identity of France...
said that if it were not for Labrousse, "historians would never have set to work as willingly as they did on the study of wages and prices". Labrousse's prominence was also a result of his post at the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
, where he supervised a generation of French post-doctoral thèses and his organizational skills from the 1950s onwards in leading team research efforts that were models of the historian's craft.
His first great work was his Esquisse du mouvement des prix et des revenus en France au XVIIIe siècle ("Sketch of the movement of prices and revenues in France during the 18th century"), 1932, the result of his law dissertation under the direction of Albert Aftalion. It synthesizes several data series on prices of food and manufactures, on incomes, including the inflationary rise in land rents, and on lagging wages over the course of the century, as part of the interplay between economic trends and class frictions that led ultimately to revolution.
Labrousse's own work concentrated on eighteenth and nineteenth-century France, but his constant concern for working methods that could be expanded beyond his subjects at hand to inspect other parts of the early modern world and the world that was transformed by the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, is exemplified in the range of studies in the hommage of his pupils and their pupils that was edited by Braudel and others, Conjoncture économique, structures sociales (Paris 1974). The "Labrousse model" of the subsistence crisis in the preindustrial grain-and-textiles economy of France and its effect in precipitating the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, detailed in the second of his two magisterial works, La Crise de l’économie française (1943), which Fernand Braudel called "the greatest work of history to have appeared in France in the course of the last twenty-five years." has especially wide application, though his paradigm
Paradigm
The word paradigm has been used in science to describe distinct concepts. It comes from Greek "παράδειγμα" , "pattern, example, sample" from the verb "παραδείκνυμι" , "exhibit, represent, expose" and that from "παρά" , "beside, beyond" + "δείκνυμι" , "to show, to point out".The original Greek...
has been adjusted by subsequent studies that have reintroduced complexities.
Labrousse, whose early background was in progressive political activism, was not strictly a member of the Annales School
Annales School
The Annales School is a group of historians associated with a style of historiography developed by French historians in the 20th century. It is named after its scholarly journal Annales d'histoire économique et sociale, which remains the main source of scholarship, along with many books and...
of historians, who were too influenced by the preconceptions of Marxist historiography
Marxist historiography
Marxist or historical materialist historiography is a school of historiography influenced by Marxism. The chief tenets of Marxist historiography are the centrality of social class and economic constraints in determining historical outcomes....
to satisfy him, but he collaborated in their efforts to create a new human history centered in historical demography
Demography
Demography is the statistical study of human population. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic human population, that is, one that changes over time or space...
. In 1948 he chaired a celebrated conference inquiring into "how revolutions are born," focusing on the French revolutions of 1789, 1830 and 1848, and applying to them his social, economic and political methodology. In 1979 he received the Balzan Prize
Balzan Prize
The International Balzan Prize Foundation awards four annual monetary prizes to people or organisations who have made outstanding achievements in the fields of humanities, natural sciences, culture, as well as for endeavours for peace and the brotherhood of man.-Rewards and assets:Each year the...
for History (ex aequo with Giuseppe Tucci
Giuseppe Tucci
Giuseppe Tucci was an Italian scholar of oriental cultures, specialising in Tibet and history of Buddhism. During its zenith, Tucci was a supporter of Italian Fascism, and he used idealized portrayals of Asian traditions to support Italian ideological campaigns...
).
Labrousse had begun as a student of François Simiand
François Simiand
François Simiand was a French sociologist and economist best known as a participant in the Année Sociologique. As a member of the French Historical School of economics, Simiand predicated a rigorous factual and statistical basis for theoretical models and policies...
.
Major works
- Esquisse du mouvement des prix et des revenus en France au XVIIIe siècle, 2 vols. (Paris:Dalloz) 1932.
- La Crise de l’économie française à la fin de l'ancien régime et au début de la Révolution (Paris:PUF) 1943, which gained him a chair at the SorbonneSorbonneThe Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
. It was introduced to an English-speaking audience by Shepard B. Clough in a review article "The Crisis in French Economy at the Beginning of the Revolution", The Journal of Economic History (1946) pp 191–96. - Histoire économique et sociale de la France, 3 vols. (Paris:PUF) 1970-79.