This work, originally published in 1817, is one of the founding texts of modern economics. Enormously successful as a stockbroker, David Ricardo (1772 1823) was able to lead the life of a wealthy country squire, while his intellectual interests caused him to move in the circles of Thomas Malthus and James Mill. It was at Mill's urging that Ricardo published this book, entered Parliament in 1819 (as an independent member for a rotten Irish borough) and worked for financial and parliamentary reform. Ricardo argues in this work that Adam Smith was mistaken in his understanding of the economic significance of rent, and also demonstrates the mutual benefit of free trade between countries, as against protectionism. The book's findings and conclusions have been controversial since its publication, but led John Stuart Mill to judge Ricardo 'the greatest political economist'."

David Ricardo's work on currency was published in 1816, and this second edition appeared in the same year. Enormously successful as a stockbroker, Ricardo (1772 1823) was able to lead the life of a wealthy country squire, while his intellectual interests caused him to move in the circles of Thomas Malthus and James Mill. Written at the urging of the Cornish businessman Pascoe Grenfell, M.P., who shared Ricardo's interest in financial matters, this work considers the problem of the national debt, in the context of paper money and whether it should in principle be exchanged at face value for gold bullion rather than for minted coins. Ricardo was very concerned at the large profits being made by the Bank of England in its dealings with the government, and suggests here the creation of an independent central bank, a proposal to which he later returned."

There can be no rise in the value of labor without a fall of profits. If the corn is to be divided between the farmer and the laborer, the larger the proportion that is given to the latter the less will remain for the former. -from "On Value" Friend to, colleague of, and influence on the likes of James Mill, Jeremy Bentham, and Thomas Malthus, revolutionary British writer DAVID RICARDO (1772-1823) was one of the foundational thinkers of classical economics, developing theories of rent, wages, profits, value, and labor that continue to dramatically impact economic philosophy today. Principles of Political Economy and Taxation, first published in 1817, is his major work. Here, he introduces the concept of comparative advantage, explores the impact of taxes, examines the effects of accumulation of profits and interest, discusses trade, currency, and banks, and much more. ALSO FROM COSIMO: Ricardo's Classics of Economics: The High Price of Bullion and An Essay on Profits British writer DAVID RICARDO (1772-1823) was one of the foundational thinkers of classical economics, developing theories of rent, wages, profits, value, and labor that continue to dramatically impact economic philosophy today.

This landmark treatise of 1817 formulated the guiding principles behind the market economy. Author David Ricardo, with Adam Smith, founded the "classical" system of political economy, a school of thought that dominated economic policies throughout the nineteenth century and figured prominently in the theories of John Stuart Mill and Karl Marx. Its foundation of the tenets of diminishing returns and economic rent led to the doctrines known today as distribution theory and international trade theory, and the Ricardian system continues to influence and inform modern economic thought