The Original Road to Serfdom: From Rome to Feudal Europe.

Hayek based his road to serfdom metaphor on an actual historical precedent: Ancient Rome. The classical historian Edward Gibbon described this original road to serfdom in 1776. Ancient Rome developed the legal institutions to support private property and commerce during the first two centuries AD. However, gradually, "bread and circuses" entitlements contributed to the crowding out of private economic activity. Rome directly commandeered labor and resources and imposed an arcane tax system. To prevent tax avoidance, emperors immobilized the tax base by tying peasants to the land and guildsmen to their crafts. These events paved the road to serfdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]