The Black Death and the Great Divergence

HUM:Global Talk! with James Belich, University of Oxford

Western Europe’s “Great Divergence” from the rest of the planet is variously dated from 500 BCE and the origins of Graeco-Roman civilization to 1750-1800 CE and the advent of industrialization. Most scholars now attribute it to superior institutions and culture traits, an improvement on racist explanations. In contrast, this lecture dates the beginning of Europe’s catch-up with China to 1350 and attributes it to the Black Death. This terrible plague halved Europe’s population and triggered an economic, social, and cultural transformation which in turn triggered global expansion. The fruits of expansion then fed back into Europe to help cause industrialization. The lecture summarizes the case made in The World the Plague Made. The Black Death and the Rise of Europe, Princeton University Press, 2022.

James Belich is Beit Professor of Global and Imperial History and Chair of the History Faculty at the University of Oxford.

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