Separation of Powers and the Medieval Roots of Institutional Divergence between Europe and the Islamic Middle East

Abstract

An influential literature sees the roots of sustained economic growth in Europe's unique institutional framework. In this article, I combine historical evidence with insights from my ongoing research to propose a conceptual framework to better understand the emergence of Europe's peculiar institutional nexus. I suggest that a succession of shocks following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire led to a gradual separation of powers between a landed aristocracy, the clergy and the sovereign in Europe. This separation of powers, in turn, provided a political environment that was uniquely conducive to growth-enhancing institutional innovation. In the Middle East, rulers did not experience the same succession of shocks and were able to prevent a European-style separation of powers through the use of slave armies.