Irrespective of politics countries can follow same policies to do well. Americans copied reforms of the Prussians (they were not democrats) to start development boom. They benefitted from foreign investments-those imperialist British financiers through the 19th century. But they used the German brains and skills developed under Prussians.
British were left behind by the Prissians and Americans becaur they were too elitist.
Even the wool industry British developed was by creating large landlords and displacing peansant farmers who were self governiong .The Enclosure Movement displaced those who used town meeting form of self govt used by the descendents of the Germanics in England. Some of the displaced came to New England-that is why it has the town meeting form of self govt. By the way this remains main way of local govt in Switzerland- which also had Germanic migrants. Germanics were of Nordic origin.