Institutional and economic development in a limited access order of Lithuania (1386–1569)

Bibliographic Data

ID17629029
AuthorsMantas Bureika (0000-0002-2164-7036, Vilnius University, corresponding author)
Year2026
Volume74
Issue2
Pages1-24
Publication date2026-02-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueScandinavian Economic History Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0358-5522 • E-ISSN: 1750-2837
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/03585522.2026.2617585
OpenAlexW7127050993
LanguageEN
References cited37

This paper studies the Grand Duchy of Lithuania between 1386 and 1569, asking if there was a relationship between its institutional development and economic outcomes. Lithuania developed a more sophisticated institutional environment by the 1490s, as it transitioned from personal governance by a warrior elite to a corporation of landowners bound by public law and shared beliefs. Structural breaks in the trends of new manors and churches suggest that elite rents significantly increased around the same time, indicating economic expansion. However, urbanisation grew slowly, while GDP per capita and health data stagnated. Expanding rents and the overall economy likely did not outpace population growth, illustrating that limited access orders cannot deliver development equitably.

Order (exchange) · Production (economics) · Historical Geopolitical and Social Dynamics · Historical Studies of British Isles · Medieval European History and Architecture

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