Research shows the decline of religious influence in the 18th century explains the puzzle of lower fertility rates
I know the rows over fish and migration mean we’re not talking to the French these days, but pondering their history is still allowed.
A huge historical puzzle is why France, from the 1760s, underwent the demographic transition to lower fertility rates a century before the rest of Europe. It’s a puzzle because economists usually argue that fertility declines are driven by technological progress, making human capital more useful and raising the cost of kids. But pre-revolution France was backwards on most development measures, with half the literacy of England and Wales.
