Ludwig von Mises

1881–1973
Nationality: Austrian
Historical Period: The 20th Century and Beyond
Ludwig von Mises (1881-1973) was the acknowledged leader of the Austrian School of economic thought, a prodigious originator in economic theory, and a prolific author. Mises’ writings and lectures encompassed economic theory, history, epistemology, government, and political philosophy. His contributions to economic theory include important clarifications on the quantity theory of money, the theory of the trade cycle, the integration of monetary theory with economic theory in general, and a demonstration that socialism must fail because it cannot solve the problem of economic calculation. Mises was the first scholar to recognize that economics is part of a larger science in human action, a science which Mises called “praxeology”. He taught at the University of Vienna and later at New York University. Mises wrote many works on two related economic themes: 1. monetary economics, inflation, and the role of government, and 2. the differences between government-controlled economies and free trade. His influential work on economic freedoms, their causes and consequences, brought him to highlight the interrelationships between economic and non-economic freedoms in societies, and the appropriate role for government.
See the Liberty Matters online discussions on The Misesian Paradox: Interventionism Is Not Sustainable and Ludwig von Mises’s The Theory of Money and Credit at 101.
Mises featured as the September 2020 OLL Birthday. Read it here
For additional information about Ludwig von Mises see the following:
- Essays on Mises
- at our sister website Econlib: the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics entry on Mises
See the Timeline of the Life and Work of Ludwig von Mises:
Key: events in the author’s life (blue); historical events (green); books & organisations (red).
Quotes from Ludwig von Mises:
- Ludwig von Mises on the division of labor
- Ludwig von Mises on the “boon” of a tariff privilege is soon dissipated
- Ludwig von Mises on cosmopolitan cooperation and peace
- Ludwig von Mises on wealth creation
Titles from Ludwig von Mises:
- Author: The Anti-capitalistic Mentality
- Author: BOLL 3: Ludwig von Mises, “Economics of War” (1949)
- Author: BOLL 4: Ludwig von Mises, “Liberty and Property” (1958)
- Author: BOLL 68: Ludwig von Mises, “Economic Calculation under Socialism” (1922)
- Author: Bureaucracy
- Author: Economic Freedom and Interventionism
- Foreword: The Economic Point of View (1976)
- Author: Economic Policy: Thoughts for Today and Tomorrow
- Author: Die Entwicklung des gutsherrlich-bäuerlichen Verhältnisses in Galizien (1772-1848)
- Author: Epistemological Problems of Economics (1933, 2013)
- Author: “Finance and Banking in the Austrian Empire and the Republic of Austria”
- Author: Human Action: A Treatise on Economics (FEE ed.)
- Author: Human Action: A Treatise on Economics, in 4 vols. (LF ed.)
- Author: Interventionism: An Economic Analysis
- Author: Liberalism: The Classical Tradition (1927) (LF ed.)
- Author: Liberalism: A Socio-Economic Exposition (IHS ed.)
- Author: Nation, State, and Economy: Contributions to the Politics and History of Our Time
- Author: Notes and Recollections with The Historical Setting of the Austrian School of Economics (2013)
- Author: Omnipotent Government: The Rise of the Total State and Total War
- Author: On the Manipulation of Money and Credit: Three Treatises on Trade-Cycle Theory
- Author: Planning for Freedom: Let the Market System Work. A Collection of Essays and Addresses
- Author: Selected Writings of Ludwig von Mises, 3 vols
- Author: Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis
- Author: Theory and History: An Interpretation of Social and Economic Evolution
- Author: Theory and History: An Interpretation of Social and Economic Evolution (LF ed.)
- Author: The Theory of Money and Credit
- Author: The Ultimate Foundation of Economic Science: An Essay on Method