Civil Conflict, State Consolidation and the Spread of Mass Education

In many Western societies, mass education often expanded before democratization. Why did non-democracies expand mass schooling? This article develops a theory of education provision driven by civil conflict. Drawing on the history of Prussia, France, and Argentina, it argues that civil conflicts that made elites fearful of losing power helped crystallize elite support for mass education to promote social order through indoctrination. Consistent with this argument, difference-in-differences estimates document a previously undetected pattern of primary education expansion following civil wars in Europe and Latin America. To better identify and explain the impact of civil conflict, the article exploits subnational variation in the exposure to the 1859 Chilean civil war. The analysis shows that following the war the central government expanded primary schooling in rebel provinces not as a concession but to teach obedience and respect for authority. The argument has implications for theories of education provision, state-building, and autocratic politics.