East Anglia was once perhaps the most populous and prosperous part of England. Nowadays, it's primarily known for its stereotypical rusticness. I've seen a number of reasons suggested for its decline and inability to recover--conservative practices in its textile industry and geographic determinism, to name two--but I am no expert on English economic history after the Anglo-Saxon period. Is it plausible that East Anglia could retain its prosperity through to industrial revolution, or regain it via the industrial revolution?
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A prosperous East Anglia?
- Thread starter Edmund
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- Sheffield
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Just based on some quick musings:
I think most of this is tied to Norwich specifically for what it's worth. I'm sure you could butterfly the Reformation or have it gain a more prominent role in the Hansa and remain prosperous from there, but I think ultimately the issue is that - as far as I'm aware? - it doesn't have the material deposits to fuel a jump to industrial revolution prosperity as happened elsewhere.
The best case scenario might be something like Norwich as Bristol (potentially stifled by London's ports) or York where it instead still becomes a "second-rate" city compared to the industrial big boys, but nevertheless is large and relatively prosperous. The surrounding Norfolk can then be similar to the environs of those cities, with relatively wealthy commuter towns/suburbs amid the rural bits.
Arthur_Phuxache
Double Points Friday
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- Greater Doncastrian Empire
There were also Hanseatic outposts at Norwich, Yarmouth, and Ipswich; close to East Anglia but not in it, there were additionally ones at Boston and Colchester (depending on how you define 'East Anglia', in the case of the latter--if the Stour Valley prospers, north Essex though in another way would be even more distinct and aligned with its northern neighbours).
Yes: the geographic determinism I referred to in the OP, just to clarify, was a suggestion that the main issue was that it faced Europe rather than the Atlantic (which somehow didn't stop Yorkshire). The lack of coal to mine in East Anglia will be an issue that not even Bristol faced, having the Bristol and Somerset coalfields.
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- Sheffield
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I think it is worth noting in this case, the coal and iron in the West Riding was exported primarily not through easier to access North Sea-adjacent Hull, but through Atlantic-adjacent Liverpool; with specific canals built for that!
Oh: I should clarify that it wasn't the coal and iron of the West Riding that was being discussed, but rather its (and Lancashire's) textile exports.
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- Sheffield
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Well, to be clear, textiles are much the same in that; Leeds' textiles went to Liverpool not to Hull.
My fault: yes, you're right. I was relying on The English Woollen Industry, 1500-1750 which has some limitations (as you can see from the title) and which indicated Hull and London were the main ports for the West Riding's exports through the eighteenth century. I was unaware of how fast the American market and hence exports from Liverpool grew.
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Electricfox
A Shower of Shenanigans.
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- Ēastengla Rīċe
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I mean, the big transition in the mid to late 20th century was towards sugar beet, at least around this area, perhaps if something threatened sugar imports so that we had to rely more heavily on domestic sugar beet, that might help boost things a bit. 
I mean, the big transition in the mid to late 20th century was towards sugar beet, at least around this area, perhaps if something threatened sugar imports so that we had to rely more heavily on domestic sugar beet, that might help boost things a bit.
Sugar beet will help but pre 1870 not having coal, iron, copper or really any minerals puts a hard cap on the regions development that is really tricky to avoid. However later on when the railway network makes the price of energy more uniform nationally you could perhaps have the region develop as a heartland of new industries, maybe Norwich rather than the Black Country as the centre of the British automobile industry?
Electricfox
A Shower of Shenanigans.
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- Ēastengla Rīċe
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It's possible, although the Black Country had the advantage of having the resources needed a lot closer than East Anglia.
More modern times though, I guess you could make Norwich a media city hub, they did do a lot of filming and radio work there through the 60s, 70s, 80s, I mean Alan Partridge.