This study of a specific industry's survival and growth in three countries is a useful resource for research on industrial development in 19th-century Europe. Presenting the history of three major cutlery districts in Western Europe during the 19th century - Sheffield in England, Bergische land (Solingen and Remscheid) in Germany, and Eskilstuna in Sweden - the author focuses on each region's industrial development vis-a-vis its socio-cultural context.

This work challenges the flexible specialization thesis often used to explain the seeming persistence of small-scale and decentralized production within the cutlery industry since the 19th century, and argues that growing businesses had to develop competitive strategies for control over important resources.