Keywords
Abstract
The subject matter of the present article is the position of Ludwig von Mises on nations and
nationalism. It is argued that Mises’s stance evolved over time, and he ultimately did not propose a
full-blown theory of these phenomena. Rather, as an economist and champion of liberalism, his main
focus lay in explaining the economic roots of national conflict and designing an international order
that could help resolve it. The paper commences with a reconstruction of Mises’s outlook on the
concepts of nation and nationalism. The next part deals with his theory of national conflict and ways
of minimizing it: the notions of domestic laissez-faire liberalism, freedom of trade and migration,
secession, and international organizations. Finally, several remarks are offered on the feasibility of the
conceptions expounded by Mises.
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