Rules, discretion and industrialisation: the patent system of the Netherlands, 1817-1869

It combines in-depth archival research with a newly constructed patent database. The new database integrates the methodological perspective by including the non-granted patents and the administrative process that led to patent grants or their refusal. This is a rare if not unique feature in quantitative historical patent research. <br><br>With this methodology, I find that the highly discretionary patent system developed fairly consistent practices, treating applicants professionally and equitably, whether foreigners or domestic residents.

In Belgium, this practice was continued after independence in 1830 and made more transparent and accessible, until the law was undermined by its own success. By contrast, in the Netherlands the patent system withered away in the face of a lack of interest and a hostile environment from politicians, judges and industrialists. I argue that there is a mutually reinforcing dynamic between the Industrial Revolution and the patent system, and that the Dutch abolition of its patent system should therefore be seen as an evolutionary rather than a revolutionary event.<br>