Economic History

Abstract

In Georgia, there existed favorable conditions for grain growing, gardening, viniculture as well as cattle breeding. It would be logical to suppose that the economy was developed in the areas that had less forest area and wild beasts. Reasoning from this, arable farming would have appeared earlier in East Georgia than in West Georgia. In South Georgia the conditions for cattle breeding were favorable. However, arable and cattle farming appeared later in West Georgia and highland regions of the Caucasian range; supposedly it was introduced from other regions. In the Middle Ages as well as in the earlier period, differences in natural conditions played an important role in the development of the economy of West and East Georgia. Because of a tough historical situation, Georgia fell behind as compared to Western Europe. It could not use favorable natural conditions as completely as European countries that managed to apply hydro and wind energy and developed navigation. Since the second half of the nineteenth century, when the capitalistic way of industry was established in Georgia, the prosperity of West Georgia started and the social-cultural life rapidly developed. Beneficial changes were marked in agriculture as well. Georgia’s economy at the beginning of the twentieth century was mainly agricultural. By the end of the 1980s, Georgia produced 1.4 % of industrial products, 0.9 % of power, 20 % of manganese mining, 1.7 % of agricultural products (among them: tea 94 %, citruses 98 %, fruit and grapes 9 to 9 %) of Soviet Union production. This chapter provides a short discussion of the economic history of Georgia.