the objective of this two-fold: to

the objective of this two-fold: to develop theoretical framework which focuses on the historical obstacles to economic growth; and to briefly apply this framework to explore the contrasting characteristics of institutional change in early modern Britain and Spain and the downstream implications for North and Latin America. in the sections that follow, i explore in :(1) the issues (2)the nature of institution; (3)the sources of institutional change; (4)the initial conditions in England and Spain; (5)English development; (6)Spanish development; and finally in section (7)the consequences for the new world. Of necessity, the historical sections are little more than outlines, illustrating the framework developed in the first sections.