Credit Where Credit Is Due: Henry Thornton and the Evolution of the Theory of Fiduciary Money.

The article presents an in-depth examination into the history of the economic theory of fiduciary money in Great Britain during the lifetime of the late 18th-century English economist Henry Thornton. The conditions and developments of the English financial system in and around 1797 are described. Thornton's influences on that system in 1802 are then discussed. The influence and views of the philosophers and economists Adam Smith, David Hume and John Law during the era are also noted. Conclusions are then offered asserting the importance of Thornton's work in pioneering the practice.