Rulers, Religion, and Riches

Rubin argues the divergence came from who rulers needed to legitimate them: where religious authorities were the source of legitimacy, commercial interests stayed out of the room where rules were made.

Why it’s on the list: Named in the “best history book” thread. An institutional answer to the Great Divergence question that turns on legitimacy rather than on geography or culture.

Where I saw it: In Kyle’s “Books To Read” Apple Note, recovered from the reply thread to @typesfast asking “What’s the best history book you’ve read?” (June 5, 2025). The full recovered list lives on What’s the best history book… (tweet).

Kyle’s line read “Rules, Religion and Riches”; the published title is Rulers, Religion, and Riches.

Connections

• What’s the best history book… (tweet) — the thread this came out of; the full recovered list lives there.
• Institutions — the mechanism.
• Economic History · Religion — the two literatures it joins.