# The Proprietors — The Wealth of Nations character guide > The Proprietors in The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith. **Role:** supporting **Also known as:** The proprietors, the proprietors, the Proprietors **First appearance:** 0009-vi-of-the-component-parts-of-the-price-of-commodities ## Snapshot Landowners who reap rent without laboring, the quiet beneficiaries of every improvement they did not make and every price rise they did not cause. ## Who they are 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. ## Relationships ### [The Chinese](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/characters/the_chinese) _professional_ The Chinese have a professional relationship with the proprietors, likely involving land or business ownership. ### [Silver](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/characters/silver) _professional_ Silver and the proprietors engage in economic transactions and property-related dealings. ## In the story ### [Of the Natural and Market Price of Commodities](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/vii-of-the-natural-and-market-price-of-commodities) Landlords who withdraw land when rent component of price falls below natural rate. ### [X: Of Wages and Profit in the Different Employments of Labour and Stock](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/x-of-wages-and-profit-in-the-different-employments-of-labour-and-stock) Landlords and farmers in the country; they are disadvantaged relative to townsmen by regulations that favor urban industry. ### [II: Inequalities Occasioned by the Policy of Europe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/ii-inequalities-occasioned-by-the-policy-of-europe) Proprietors in the countryside whose industry is less advantageous compared to towns. ### [Of the Rent of Land](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/xi-of-the-rent-of-land) Identified as the first order of society, living by rent; their interest is strictly connected with the general interest, but their indolence often makes them ignorant of public regulations. ### [Conclusion of the Chapter](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/conclusion-of-the-chapter) Landlords whose revenue comes from rent; their interest aligns with society but they are often ignorant and indolent. ### [I: Of the Division of Stock](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/i-of-the-division-of-stock) Implied as owners of profitable buildings and land improvements that yield rent. ### [I: Of the Natural Progress of Opulence](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/i-of-the-natural-progress-of-opulence) Landowners who benefit from the proximity of towns, gaining higher prices for their produce. ### [Of the Rise and Progress of Cities and Towns, After the Fall of the Roman Empire](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/iii-of-the-rise-and-progress-of-cities-and-towns-after-the-fall-of-the-roman-empire) Described as living in fortified castles after the fall of the Roman Empire. ### [How the Commerce of the Towns Contributed to the Improvement of the Country](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/iv-how-the-commerce-of-the-towns-contributed-to-the-improvement-of-the-country) Great proprietors who consumed surplus produce through rustic hospitality and maintained retainers before commerce. ### [III: Of the Advantages Which Europe Has Derived from the Discovery of America, and from That of a Passage to the East Indies by the Cape of Good Hope](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/iii-of-the-advantages-which-europe-has-derived-from-the-discovery-of-america-and-from-that-of-a-passage-to-the-east-indies-by-the-cape-of-good-hope) The shopkeepers and traders of England who petitioned Parliament to secure the monopoly of colonial custom, acting as the driving force behind the mercantile regulations. ### [VIII: Conclusion of the Mercantile System](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/viii-conclusion-of-the-mercantile-system) Landlords and farmers whose interest in wool and hides is discussed in relation to price regulations. ### [Chapter IX: Of the Agricultural Systems, or of Those Systems of Political Œconomy, Which Represent the Produce of Land as Either the Sole or the Principal Source of the Revenue and Wealth of Every Country](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/ix-of-the-agricultural-systems-or-of-those-systems-of-political-conomy-which-represent-the-produce-of-land-as-either-the-sole-or-the-principal-source-of-the-revenue-and-wealth-of-every-country) Landowners who receive rent and are part of the productive class in the agricultural system. ### [I: Of the Expenses of the Sovereign or Commonwealth](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/i-of-the-expenses-of-the-sovereign-or-commonwealth) Described as indifferent stewards and sovereigns of the East India Company, prioritizing their own interests over good governance. ### [Of the Public Works and Institutions Which Are Necessary for Facilitating Particular Branches of Commerce](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/of-the-public-works-and-institutions-which-are-necessary-for-facilitating-particular-branches-of-commerce) Criticized for their indifference to the prosperity of the empire and their focus on personal influence and plunder. ### [Taxes Upon the Rent of Houses](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/taxes-upon-the-rent-of-houses) Referred to as owners of ground-rents who act as monopolists and would bear the burden of a tax on ground-rents. ### [Taxes Upon Profit, or Upon the Revenue Arising from Stock](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/chapters/taxes-upon-profit-or-upon-the-revenue-arising-from-stock) Landowners who may bear the final burden of taxes on farming stock through reduced rent. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/characters/the_proprietors - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_wealth_of_nations_se/characters