Exciting an Emulation

This chapter discusses the Royal Society of Arts' promotion of commerce. It traces trade in the eighteenth century, which was closely tied to the coercive power of the state and was one of the principal sources of government revenue. It also describes trade as a tool for enriching a country at the expense of its neighbors, emphasizing the belief among rulers and politicians across Europe that it was essential to maximize a country's stock of specie. The chapter explains mercantilism as an attitude towards trade in which rivals were made to pay for exports, while as little as possible were spent on foreign imports. It also points out how mercantilist attitudes had geopolitical repercussions.