Adam Smith On Empire

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The pitfalls of world empire are becoming increasingly clear to more and more people. And they were equally clear to Adam Smith, As P.J. O’Rourke observes,

“Adam Smith thought that the mistakes of British imperial policy were so grave and so dangerous to individuals that he used an ardent condemnation of that policy as his final passage in The Wealth of Nations:

The rulers of Great Britain have, for more than a century past, amused the people with the imagination that they possessed a great empire on the west side of the Atlantic. This empire, however, has hitherto existed in imagination only. It has hitherto been, not an empire, but the project of an empire; not a gold mine, but the project of a gold mine.... It is surely now time that our rulers should either realize this golden dream, in which they have been indulging themselves, perhaps, as well as the people; or, that they should awake from it themselves, and endeavour to awaken the people. If the project cannot be completed, it ought to be given up... Great Britain should free herself from the expence of defending those provinces in time of war, and of supporting any part of their civil or military establishments in time of peace, and endeavour to accommodate her future views and designs to the real mediocrity of her circumstances.”[i]

In other words Britain should recognize her humble state in the world, and start acting accordingly or the pretence of empire is going to come crashing down. If they cannot really control all these nations, they should stop pretending that they do. Because if they do not, they will be rudely awakened to this fact eventually.

I wonder if Smith could have ever conceived that the collapse of the British Empire would help usher the world into two World Wars, and help set up the conditions for the Cold War? Not very likely, but he still was able to see how foolish it is for a nation to seek to arrogate itself above its proper station.

I think the rulers of the United States empire of today should take notice. If you cannot rule goat herders in the backwaters of the Middle East, you cannot rule the world, because there are far larger foes out there than that, who are capable of far tougher resistence. But what is more likely is that those who warn the U.S. off empire will be as thoroughly ignored as Adam Smith was about the British Empire. To rule over other nations is a foolish endeavour, that your nation can pull it off for a time broadens the temptation and the trap involved in doing so, and a failure to maintain such control is inevitable. Eventually, even the most ruthless Imperial powers collapse. The bigger they are, the harder they fall. Better that they humbly let go, sadly human pride rarely chooses this option. 

List Of References

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[i] P.J. O’Rourke, On The Wealth of Nations, Grove Press, pp.130-131.