This first of a two-part examination of the economic development of the Czech lands deals with the period from the mid-eighteenth century (the accession of Maria Theresa to the Austrian throne) to the end of the World War I. In this key period of industrialization, economic, social, political, legal, and cultural changes intersected. Featuring chapters by leading Czech experts in the economic development and social history of the Czech lands, this broad study explores the multifaceted conditions and outcomes of modernization in Central Europe—from social development to industry, agriculture, banking, transport, and infrastructure—as well as offers valuable comparisons with relevant regions of the Habsburg Empire and Western Europe. Also included are an extensive bibliography and indexes and charts of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, the scope of the authority of the chambers of trade and industry, the development of leading engineering companies, and various maps, including of the Czech railway network.

Ivan Jakubec is professor at the Institute of Social and Economic History of Charles University, Prague, where he specializes in the history of modern infrastructure and transport in central Europe. Zdeněk Jindra is professor emeritus at and the founder of the Institute of Social and Economic History at Charles University, Prague. He is an expert on nineteenth to twentieth-century banking, military industry, and World War I. Phil Jones is a translator of Czech into English.