The Wealth of Nations · Characters
Character guide
Key figures in The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith.
Skim names here — open a free preview to see character cards and Character Web beside the page as you read.
Adam Smith
major
Also known as Dr. Adam Smith, Smith, Probably Smith
Smith spent a decade assembling his inquiry into why some nations grow rich while others stagnate, publishing it in 1776 as Britain's American troubles boiled over. He is no dry theorist: he notices that a professor paid by fixed salary grows lazy, that brewers and bakers feed us not from kindness but from regard to their own interest, and that the same self-love builds both opulence and moral hazard. His calm, patient voice is the engine of the book — a guide who trusts you to follow a long argument because he has already walked every step of it himself.
The Teacher
supporting
Also known as the teacher, himself, The teacher
Smith returns again and again to the teacher — sometimes a university master, sometimes a preacher — as a test case for how institutions shape behavior. When teachers live on voluntary contributions from students or hearers, they hustle; when they rest on endowed salaries or tithes, they grow indolent and lose the arts of popularity to hungrier rivals. The tension is not personal vice but structural: a well-fed clergy, Smith observes, can be routed by 'popular and bold, though perhaps stupid and ignorant enthusiasts,' which is why established churches so often call for the magistrate's sword.
The Proprietors
supporting
Also known as The proprietors, the proprietors, the Proprietors
The proprietors sit at the top of Smith's agricultural order, collecting a fourth or even a third of the produce while, as he puts it, 'nature does nothing; man does all' — yet the rent flows to those who own rather than those who work. Their interest is peculiar: they are the only class whose revenue rises with the general prosperity without their lifting a finger, and Smith treats them with a mix of respect and cool observation. They matter because their rents anchor his account of how agricultural capital, unlike the wandering capital of merchants, stays put and multiplies the wealth of a whole society.
The Colonies
supporting
Also known as the colonies, Their, themselves, their
Smith treats the colonies not as a political cause but as a living laboratory: their plantations follow the seacoast and navigable rivers, their inland markets stay thin, and their whole pattern of settlement reveals how geography and navigation dictate the pace of opulence. They are also a running grievance — a place where European nations imagine they will find gold and instead find tobacco, fish, and fur, and where the mercantile system's restrictions chafe against natural growth. Their story in the early books is the story of how wealth actually accumulates when land is abundant and labor scarce, a counterpoint to the cramped economies of Europe.
Great Britain
supporting
Also known as its, Its, herself, it
Britain is the book's implicit protagonist: a country that has grown rich through commerce yet hobbles itself with monopolies, bounties, and a colonial system designed for merchants rather than for the public. Smith traces how authority and subordination first arose among shepherds, then follows that thread into the modern state, where the sovereign's third duty — public works too unprofitable for any individual — becomes the test of good government. The tension is between Britain's actual prosperity and its self-inflicted wounds, and Smith's argument for free trade is, at bottom, an argument about what Britain could become.
The Employer
supporting
Also known as himself, The employer, the employer
Smith introduces the employer not as a villain but as a structural fact: masters are fewer, better organized, and can hold out longer than workmen, so 'combinations' of employers are tacit and durable while workers' combinations are noisy and illegal. The employer's interest is to keep wages low, and Smith notes drily that whenever masters meet, the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public or in some contrivance to raise prices. This figure matters because he embodies Smith's refusal to sentimentalize capital: the market's harmony is real, but it is negotiated from unequal positions, and the reader who sees that will read the rest of the book differently.
A Workman
supporting
Also known as himself, a workman
The artificer whose workshop is his only harvest: when he marches off to war, nature does nothing for him, and the public must pay his way.
The Dutch
supporting
Also known as the Dutch, The Dutch, themselves, theirs, their
Holland's merchants lend at two percent, trade on thinner profits than anyone in Europe, and still hold the carrying trade of France in their hands.
The Master
supporting
Also known as The master, the master
The great shepherd whose flocks and lineage command the clan's obedience, making him judge, general, and protector all at once.
Columbus
minor
Also known as himself
Explorer whose voyages are cited in colonial context.
Bishop Fleetwood
minor
Also known as Fleetwood, Bishop Fleetwood
Historical figure cited for wage and price data.
The Servants
supporting
Also known as the servants, theirs, themselves, The servants, their
The dependents who look up to the great herdsman for protection, complaint, and judgment, bound to him by subsistence rather than contract.
The Romans
minor
Also known as The Romans, the Romans, Romans, their
Ancient Roman society used as historical comparison.
Servants
supporting
Also known as servants, their, Servants
Hired hands whose subsistence ties them to a master's household, the human measure of subordination in every stage of society.
Mr. Meggens
minor
Also known as Mr. Meggens
Cited authority on trade and prices.
The Spaniards
minor
Also known as the Spaniards, The Spaniards, Their, themselves, their
Spanish people as colonial and economic example.
The Masters
supporting
Also known as the masters, The masters, their
The employers whose birth and fortune set them above other men, and whose authority quietly becomes the state's first government.
Their Masters
supporting
Also known as their masters
In Smith's economic drama, masters are the counterpart to workers: the ones who buy labour, own the capital, and decide whether to hire or hold back. Their bargaining advantage is structural, not personal — they can wait longer, combine more easily, and rarely face ruin if a dispute drags on. That asymmetry is one of the early engines of the book's argument about why wages, prices, and power land where they do.
Edward I and III
minor
Also known as Edward I, Edward III
English kings cited for historical economic policies.
Masters
supporting
Also known as Masters, their, masters
Masters appear throughout Smith's examples as the party who sets terms, advances stock, and decides when to employ. Their interests rarely align neatly with those of their workers, and Smith treats that friction as ordinary rather than scandalous. Understanding their incentives is essential to the book's middle arc, where prices, profits, and the division of labour all hinge on what masters choose to do.
Charles II
minor
Also known as Charles II, Charles I, King Charles II
English king cited for economic legislation.
The Judges
minor
Also known as the judges, their, The judges
Judicial figures in discussions of justice and economy.
Mr. Kalm
minor
Also known as Mr. Kalm, Kalm
Traveler cited for observations on colonies.
Francis Hutcheson
minor
Also known as Francis Hutcheson, Hutcheson
Philosopher and teacher of Adam Smith.
Queen Elizabeth I
minor
Also known as Elizabeth, Queen Elizabeth
English queen cited for economic policies.
Their Master
supporting
Also known as their master, himself
Where 'masters' are a class, 'their master' is the particular man a labourer answers to — the one who pays, directs, and can dismiss. Smith uses this figure to show how personal dependence and market forces intertwine in everyday employment. The relationship matters because it makes abstract questions of wages and authority concrete: someone specific holds the purse.
William III
minor
Also known as William III, William
English king cited for financial reforms.
The Servants of the Company
minor
Also known as The servants of the company, the servants of the company, themselves, their
Employees of trading companies in colonial context.
Isocrates
minor
Also known as Isocrates, himself
Ancient Greek orator cited for economic observations.
The Europeans
minor
Also known as the Europeans, Europeans
European peoples as collective economic actors.
The Portuguese
minor
Also known as the Portuguese, The Portuguese, Portuguese, themselves, their
Portuguese people as colonial and trade example.
Henry VIII
minor
Also known as Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, himself
English king cited for economic and religious policies.
Don Antoine de Ulloa
minor
Also known as Ulloa, don Antoine de Ulloa
Spanish explorer and writer cited on South America.
Their Servants
supporting
Also known as their servants
Servants occupy a peculiar place in Smith's scheme: their work is real, often necessary, and yet unproductive in his technical sense because it fixes itself in no lasting commodity. They are maintained out of the annual produce just like everyone else, but they add nothing to next year's stock. Their presence sharpens the book's distinction between labour that reproduces capital and labour that merely consumes it.
Those Officers
minor
Also known as Those officers, their, those officers
Generic officials in administrative examples.
Holland
minor
Also known as Holland, its, their
Dutch province as economic model.
David Hume
minor
Also known as Hume, Mr. Hume, Hume
Philosopher and friend of Smith, cited on economics.
Gregory King
minor
Also known as Mr. Gregory King, Mr. King, Gregory King
Statistician cited for population and economic data.
His Master
supporting
Also known as his master
In Smith's illustrative cases, 'his master' stands for the particular man whose interest and temper shape a worker's prospects. He is neither villain nor benefactor by default — just the party on the other side of the wage bargain. His choices help Smith demonstrate how self-interest, custom, and law together determine what labour actually earns.
Dugald Stewart
minor
Also known as Dugald Stewart, Stewart, Dugald Stewart, Stewart
Philosopher and biographer of Adam Smith.
Columella
minor
Also known as Columella
Roman writer on agriculture cited for economic data.
The Greeks
minor
Also known as the Greeks, their
Ancient Greek society as historical comparison.
All Servants and Labourers
supporting
Also known as all servants and labourers, their
Smith gathers servants, soldiers, lawyers, musicians, and labourers into one sweeping category to make a hard analytical point: not all work is productive in the sense of replacing and augmenting capital. Their maintenance draws on the same annual produce that funds everyone else, so the proportion of such hands matters enormously. This distinction underpins the book's middle chapters on accumulation, where the line between productive and unproductive labour quietly decides a nation's growth.
A Master
supporting
Also known as a master
He never speaks, never appears, yet his decisions ripple through Smith's examples of how labor is hired, divided, and paid. The tension is structural: he wants profit, his workers want subsistence, and the bargain between them is never equal. Reading him closely reveals how Smith turns a single employer's ledger into a theory of the whole commercial order.
Officers
minor
Also known as officers
Generic officials in administrative contexts.
The French
minor
Also known as the French, The French, their
French people as economic and political example.
Aristotle
minor
Also known as Aristotle, 1400 Aristotle
Ancient Greek philosopher cited on economics.
Mr. Duprè de St. Maur
minor
Also known as Mr. Duprè de St. Maur
French author cited on population and prices.
Menial Servants
supporting
Also known as menial servants, Their, their
They keep the household running but leave nothing behind that can be sold or reinvested, which makes them Smith's sharpest illustration of what a nation's stock actually grows on. Their dependence on a master's purse exposes the fragility of employment that produces service rather than goods. In the early arc of the book, they anchor the distinction that everything else about capital accumulation will lean on.
Those Masters
supporting
Also known as Those masters, Their, those masters, their
They appear as a class rather than as individuals, coordinating quietly while their workers scatter and struggle to combine. Smith notes their superior staying power, their ability to hold out longer in any dispute, and the laws that tilt the field further in their favor. Their presence in the early chapters sets up the book's recurring worry: that markets may be free in theory but rarely in practice.
Plato
minor
Also known as Plato, himself
Ancient Greek philosopher cited on economics.
Silver
minor
Also known as Silver, its, Its, it
Precious metal personified in value discussions.
The Tartars
minor
Also known as the Tartars, the Scythians, the Scythians or Tartars, from whom too they were probably descended, their
Nomadic peoples as historical economic example.
Sir Matthew Decker
minor
Also known as Sir Matthew Decker, Decker
Merchant and writer on trade cited by Smith.
Common Servants
supporting
Also known as common servants, Their, their
They are the baseline case, the workers whose pay reflects nothing but the going rate for unskilled hands. Their situation dramatizes the gap between what keeps a laborer alive and what lets him raise a family, a gap Smith treats as the real floor under wages. Following them through the early chapters shows how the wealth of a nation is measured in the daily bread of its least conspicuous workers.
John Locke
minor
Also known as Mr. Locke, Locke
Philosopher cited on property and value.
George II
minor
Also known as George II, the 23rd George II, George I, George
British king cited for economic legislation.
The Chinese
minor
Also known as the Chinese, their, themselves
Chinese people as economic comparison.
Sir Josiah Child
minor
Also known as Sir Josiah Child, Child
Merchant and writer on trade cited by Smith.
Adam Anderson
minor
Also known as Adam Anderson, Anderson
Historian cited for commercial and price data.
Charles Smith
minor
Also known as Smith, Charles Smith, Charles
Author cited on corn trade and prices.
The Priests
minor
Also known as the priests, their
Religious figures in discussions of education and economy.
The Peruvians
minor
Also known as the Peruvians, Their, their
Indigenous people of Peru as economic example.
Dr. Mandeville
minor
Also known as Mandeville, Dr. Mandeville
Philosopher and author of The Fable of the Bees.
The Famous Gassendi
minor
Also known as The famous Gassendi
French philosopher cited for economic ideas.
Reverend Mr. John Smith
minor
Also known as Mr. Smith, Smith, the Reverend Mr. John Smith, John Smith
Clergyman cited on population and economic data.
Asdrubal
minor
Also known as Asdrubal
Carthaginian general cited as historical example.
The Customhouse Officer
minor
Also known as the customhouse officer
Customs official in trade examples.
W. Strahan
minor
Also known as Strahan, W. Strahan
Publisher of Adam Smith's works.
Annibal
minor
Also known as Annibal
Carthaginian general cited as historical example.
John Rae
minor
Also known as John Rae, Rae, Rae
Biographer of Adam Smith.
Henry III
minor
Also known as Henry III, Henry
English king cited for economic policies.
Cp. Hume
minor
Also known as Cp, Hume, Cp . Hume
Possibly a variant reference to David Hume.
Chief Baron Gilbert
minor
Also known as Chief Baron Gilbert, Robert
Legal writer cited on property and revenue.
Isabella, Mary, Ann
minor
Also known as Isabella, Mary, Ann, 4 Ann, Bell, John Bell of Antermony
Historical figures cited in colonial context.
Joseph Harris
minor
Also known as Joseph Harris, Harris
Writer on money and coins cited by Smith.
James Postlethwayt
minor
Also known as Postlethwayt, James Postlethwayt, Postlethwayt
Writer on commerce and public revenue.
Parish Officers
minor
Also known as parish officers, their, themselves
Local officials in discussions of poor relief.
Clerks of a Great Countinghouse
minor
Also known as the clerks of a great countinghouse at ten thousand miles distance, and consequently almost quite out of sight, should, upon a simple order from their masters, themselves, their
Remote clerks in colonial trade example.
George III
minor
Also known as George III
British king during Smith's time.
Mr. Lowndes
minor
Also known as Mr. Lowndes, Lowndes, Lowndes
Official cited on coinage and currency.
Christiern II
minor
Also known as Christiern II
Danish king cited as historical example.
Mr. Pelham
minor
Also known as Mr. Pelham
British politician cited for financial policy.
