The Myth of Free Trade and the Bairoch Paradox in Historical Perspective

This article provides an in-depth historical and economic analysis of the so-called Bairoch paradox, which challenges traditional understandings of free trade. The author examines 19th-century Europe as an economic laboratory, where periods of high tariffs paradoxically correlated with the fastest GDP growth rates and trade expansion. The text details the impact of the transportation revolution, the agrarian crisis, and diverse state strategies—from British hegemony to the development models of Denmark and Belgium. The work concludes with a reflection on contemporary new productivism and economic sovereignty in the context of historical experiences with protectionism.