Defence is of Much More Importance than Opulence—Adam Smith on the Political Economy of War

Heinz D. Kurz ()
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Heinz D. Kurz: University of Graz, RESOWI-Zentrum EF

A chapter in Power and Responsibility, 2023, pp 31-43 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract The paper discusses Adam Smith’s political economy of war. Wars were considered by him as one way of increasing the wealth of a nation and the power of the king. Since the speed of socioeconomic development differs between nations, this raises a problem for the continuation of the process of civilization. Rich nations, in which the commercial spirit has replaced the martial spirit, are vulnerable and in danger of being attacked by “barbarian” ones. The “wisdom of the state” is needed to avoid the process of civilization coming to a halt by financing a standing army and supporting a militia. Smith stresses that “defence is of much more importance than opulence” and praises the virtues of the soldier who is willing to defend his country at the cost of sacrificing his life. Selfishness is not all that is needed in order to yield socially beneficial outcomes.

JEL-codes: B12 B31 D64 D74 F51 H56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:sprchp:978-3-031-23015-8_3

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-23015-8_3

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