Friedrich Althoff (1839‐1908), who created the “Althoff system”, has had a singularly important influence on shaping academic institutions in Germany for almost a generation. As a close collaborator of leading German scholars his influence lasted almost throughout the second empire...

A reconsideration of some Austrian work in public finance analysis that is based on a positive theory of the state and its relationship with the market economy is offered. The contributions of some prominent Austrian economists are considered, and how they relate to contemporary thinking in...

Context and Relevance Censorship conjures images of despotic governments strangulating the expression of political convictions. Censorship is the violation of a basic human right. But censorship appears in many forms, and the most effective approach may not be the most imposing. Hence, I look at...

Reports that, in 1943, Heinrich Freiherr von Stackelberg (1905‐1946) discussed with an informal group meeting in Freiburg (Breisgau ‐ Germany) “Limits and possibilities of economic planning”. Explains that the group called after its chairman “von Beckerath Circle” met to discuss...

Understanding chances of reforming the common agricultural policy (CAP) of the European Union, for instance, requires an appreciation of its intellectual roots. Seeking such an understanding is the purpose of this article, which has the following structure. Next to this introduction and the...

Heinrich von Storch (1766‐1835) can claim a very specific position in the history of political economy. Clearly steeped in Camaralist thought, due to his upbringing and later scholarly work in Russia, he was primarily interested in the nature and the causes of the wealth of a nation that he...

Mass privatization is one form of changing the property rights regime of formerly publicly‐owned means of production in the former peoples’ republics of Central and Eastern Europe. From an economic point of view, the central question at this transition is whether the change in property...

In this essay we set out to show that Henry George's basic approach to economic thinking is very timely in the light of some pressing problems currently experienced by Western industrialised nations. The paper essentially makes two contributions. The first three sections are designed to show...

It is proposed that social economics is in danger of losing its societal significance if economic analysis is reduced to one method only. Recently, prominent economists have emphasised the need to reintroduce the historical method into economic research work. A brief look is taken at some of the...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on links between former “Heilbronn Symposia” on social, economic and political changes, and evolutionary concepts of the nineteenth and early twentieth century to solve the “Social Question” (“S. Qu.”) in Germany....