The Economist was founded in response to the English Corn Laws [1], a series of mercantilist trade restrictions on grain imports into Britain. The founder, Jame

The Economist was founded in response to the English Corn Laws [1], a series of mercantilist trade restrictions on grain imports into Britain. The founder, James Wilson, was an avid advocate of free trade, and founded the paper to oppose mercantilism [2]. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corn_Laws https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corn_Laws [2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Economist#History https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Economist#History