Abstract
A Market for Economical Knowledge? On the Difficulties in Recruiting Technical-Economic Specialists in the 17th Century In 1624, Landgrave Moritz of Hesse-Kassel sent his chamber director Wilhelm of Craesbeke to the Netherlands. His task was to meet a number of people who had offered to bring secrets (secreta or Mittel) to his lands shortly before. The economy of Hesse-Kassel stood to benefit substantively from both. It was Craesbeke’s task to find out more and, wherever it seemed worthwhile, to negotiate with the men. The article reconstructs the challenges of recruiting technical-economic specialists in the 17th century. In doing so, it outlines the market for economic knowledge, the precarious status of this knowledge and the roles played by the various market actors. It shows the close connection between knowledge and the economy in the history of the early modern period and emphasizes the importance of competition for technical and economic knowledge in early modern politics.
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