Introduction

Abstract

This chapter discusses the importance of examining the Act of Union of 1707 as a manifestation of mercantilist economic thought. Placing the Union in the context of economic ideas sheds further light on both the contents of the treaty and the actions of the English and Scottish Parliaments. The definition of mercantilism used in the book, a system of theory and policies that seeks to maximize national power, is examined. Key aspects of English mercantilism employed in legislation before and during the negotiations—warfare without military conquest, the idea of surplus, and particular notions of wealth, power, trade, and transmutation—are introduced. How these are connected to the concept of structural violence is examined. The outline of the rest of the book is also discussed.