The Implications of the Enclosure Movement in England for China's Economic Development

As one of the most important event in English economic history, the enclosure movement involved fundamental economic and social changes as the old common-field system broke down and the modern private ownership was established. As numerous small landholders were ruthlessly pushed out of their land, the enclosure movement was accompanied by violence, exploitation and killing. More attention has been attached to its cruelty. With a careful analysis it is found that the enclosure movement was inevitable for the old open-field system hampered the improvement of productivity. With the amalgamation of land, capitalist agriculture was eventually established, which provided immense cheap agricultural products, raw materials, cheap labor force and a national integrated market for industrialization and urbanization. It has important implications for China's economic development. The current household's farming is inefficient. The intensive and professional management of land is a way to correspond to the changing market. Industrialization and urbanization takes time as the enclosure movement lasted for about three hundred year. Excessive land conversion will cause social distress.