It is well known that no equivalent of the German. Betriebswirtschaftslehre(business economics) developed in Britain. British economists were relatively uninterested in the internal workings of organizations, and thus did not provide the same theoretical underpinnings to the early development of accounting that were achieved in several continental European countries. This paper explores the reasons for such a failure. The explanation offered is partly grounded in the emergence of economics as a recognized academic discipline in British universities, which was achieved only through a concentration on theoretical analysis at the expense of more ‘applied’ studies. However, through the period under review, a number of attempts were made to develop an economics more relevant to the organization, and more hospitable to accounting. Most notable of these were the attempts of W. J. Ashley to develop a science of commerce, and the work of the ‘Arnold Plant group’ at the London School of Economics. Although the latter made seminal contributions not only to the application of economic theory to accounting but also to the modern theory of the firm, developments in the latter took place outside Britain. Ultimately, accounting was largely disdained by British theoretical economists.