What?: An economic theory for colonization.
Where? Used by the Western Europeans (England, France, Spain)
When?: 1600’s and 1700’s
Who?: Adam Smith supported the theory.
Why?: Taking colonies enriched the treasuries of the Western European countries making them powerful
How?:
1)Colonies are to be acquired and exist to benefit the mother country.
2)The colonies are required to provide raw materials at low prices to the mother country and are required to buy finished goods from the mother country at high prices.
3)The colonies are forbidden to trade with nations other than their mother country.
Importance:
1) The nations of Western Europe grew rich and powerful
2)Their was a great deal of anger in the colonies toward the mother countries which eventually sparked revolutions in the colonies against the mother countries (American, Latin American and Haitian Revolutions.)
3) The long term impact of mercantilism was to devastate the economies of the lands coloniezed by the Europeans.
Related Terms: 1) Imperialism, 2) Economic System, 3) Resources, 4) Markets