Tomás de Mercado
Encyclopedia
Tomás de Mercado was a Spanish Dominican
friar
and both an economist
and a theologian, best known for his book Summa de Tratos y Contratos ("Manual of Deals and Contracts") of 1571. Together with Martín de Azpilcueta
he founded the economic tradition of "Iberian monetarism
"; both form part of the general intellectual tradition often known as "Late Scholasticism
", or the School of Salamanca
.
He was either born in Seville
or possibly Mexico
, where he joined the Dominicans as a young man, becoming lecturer in Arts in the Priory in Mexico City
, before returning to study at Salamanca University, where he then became a lecturer in philosophy
, moral theology
and law. He then worked in the Exchange House of Seville
, the centre of Spain's international money-flows. He died at sea on a voyage returning to Mexico.
Mercado became more widely known outside the Spanish-speaking world after he was discussed by Joseph Schumpeter
in his History of Economic Analysis, published posthumously, ed. Elisabeth Boody Schumpeter, in 1954. With the strong revival of monetarist economics since then, he has attracted further scholarly attention.
that was affecting Spain to the influx of American gold, and Mercado extended this analysis, remarking that:
He devotes much thought to the concept of the fair or "just price", analysing it in terms of wheat
, and strongly supporting the tasa or fixed price set by the government on social and ethical grounds, even if it meant producers selling at a loss.
Mercado devoted a chapter to the African slave trade
, of which he was highly critical, seeing clearly that the concept of "just enslavement" did not reflect the practice of the actual trade. However he regarded it as acceptable for Europeans to buy slaves enslaved by Africans, and accepted the enslavement of captives in war, those sentenced for crimes, or children sold by their parents from necessity.
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
friar
Friar
A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders.-Friars and monks:...
and both an economist
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
and a theologian, best known for his book Summa de Tratos y Contratos ("Manual of Deals and Contracts") of 1571. Together with Martín de Azpilcueta
Martín de Azpilcueta
Martín de Azpilcueta , or Doctor Navarrus, was an important Spanish canonist and theologian in his time, and an early economist, the first to develop monetarist theory.-Life:...
he founded the economic tradition of "Iberian monetarism
Monetarism
Monetarism is a tendency in economic thought that emphasizes the role of governments in controlling the amount of money in circulation. It is the view within monetary economics that variation in the money supply has major influences on national output in the short run and the price level over...
"; both form part of the general intellectual tradition often known as "Late Scholasticism
Scholasticism
Scholasticism is a method of critical thought which dominated teaching by the academics of medieval universities in Europe from about 1100–1500, and a program of employing that method in articulating and defending orthodoxy in an increasingly pluralistic context...
", or the School of Salamanca
School of Salamanca
The School of Salamanca is the renaissance of thought in diverse intellectual areas by Spanish and Portuguese theologians, rooted in the intellectual and pedagogical work of Francisco de Vitoria...
.
He was either born in Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
or possibly Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, where he joined the Dominicans as a young man, becoming lecturer in Arts in the Priory in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
, before returning to study at Salamanca University, where he then became a lecturer in philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, moral theology
Moral theology
Moral theology is a systematic theological treatment of Christian ethics. It is usually taught on Divinity faculties as a part of the basic curriculum.- External links :*...
and law. He then worked in the Exchange House of Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, the centre of Spain's international money-flows. He died at sea on a voyage returning to Mexico.
Mercado became more widely known outside the Spanish-speaking world after he was discussed by Joseph Schumpeter
Joseph Schumpeter
Joseph Alois Schumpeter was an Austrian-Hungarian-American economist and political scientist. He popularized the term "creative destruction" in economics.-Life:...
in his History of Economic Analysis, published posthumously, ed. Elisabeth Boody Schumpeter, in 1954. With the strong revival of monetarist economics since then, he has attracted further scholarly attention.
Mercado's Summa
The Summa was an expanded edition of a work first published in 1569 as De los tratos de India y tratantes en ellas. It was written for businessmen as well as scholars and contains many general digressions on social issues, often in very lively language. Azpilcueta, a few years before, was the first to link the price revolutionPrice revolution
Used generally to describe a series of economic events from the second half of the 15th century to the first half of the 17th, the price revolution refers most specifically to the relatively high rate of inflation that characterized the period across Western Europe, with prices on average rising...
that was affecting Spain to the influx of American gold, and Mercado extended this analysis, remarking that:
"High prices ruined Spain as the prices attracted Asian commodities and the silver currency flowed out to pay for them. The streets of Manila in the Spanish territories of the Philippines could be paved with granite cobblestone brought from China as ballastSailing ballastBallast is used in sailboats to provide moment to resist the lateral forces on the sail. Insufficiently ballasted boats will tend to tip, or heel, excessively in high winds. Too much heel may result in the boat capsizing. If a sailing vessel should need to voyage without cargo then ballast of...
in Chinese ships coming to get silver for China".
He devotes much thought to the concept of the fair or "just price", analysing it in terms of wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
, and strongly supporting the tasa or fixed price set by the government on social and ethical grounds, even if it meant producers selling at a loss.
Mercado devoted a chapter to the African slave trade
African slave trade
Systems of servitude and slavery were common in many parts of Africa, as they were in much of the ancient world. In some African societies, the enslaved people were also indentured servants and fully integrated; in others, they were treated much worse...
, of which he was highly critical, seeing clearly that the concept of "just enslavement" did not reflect the practice of the actual trade. However he regarded it as acceptable for Europeans to buy slaves enslaved by Africans, and accepted the enslavement of captives in war, those sentenced for crimes, or children sold by their parents from necessity.