6 However, it makes sense to focus on Vienna when we try to explain the formation of global cities from a historical perspective. The authors explain the differences in the pattern of German, British and French global cities through their historical evolution: “This is a classic example of historical path dependence: for all the upheaval of globalization these two national primate city structures continue to feature very strongly locally within the world city network.” 3Ĥ Vienna, the case study in this chapter, is not near the top of European cities in global terms: according to a recent ranking, it holds the fifteenth position, between Prague (14) und Budapest (16). 2 A study by a team around Peter Taylor supports this perspective. Instead, this logic is deeply rooted in the system of the nation state: its history, its urban system and its fiscal policy. Furthermore, Sassen highlights that the process of globalization must be explained – in its historic origins – through structures that do not follow the logic of globalization. Consequently, although recent globalization has been dominated by global production networks and a global financial market, these processes cannot explain the rise of the global age.
According to her theory, a phenomenon – such as globalization – can be described, but not explained, by globalized processes.
1 In a more recent work, Saskia Sassen warns against the “endogeneity trap” 1 when explaining globalization processes.
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