Published in the same year as the American Declaration of Independence, The Wealth of Nations has had an equally great impact on the course of modern history. Adam Smith’s celebrated defence of free market economics is notable also as one of the Enlightenment’s most eloquent testaments to the sancti...

Published in the same year as the American Declaration of Independence, The Wealth of Nations has had an equally great impact on the course of modern history. Adam Smith’s celebrated defence of free market economics is notable also as one of the Enlightenment’s most eloquent testaments to the sanctity of the individual in his relations to the state.