The Wealth of Nations is a polemic against economic centralism and restrictions on trade. It was published in 1776, the year that Britain lost control of its colonies in America. Adam Smith and David Hume are best friends. You can trace Hume's influence on virtually everything that Smith ever wrote.
Economists and politicians have turned him into a mascot for free-market ideology. Some on the left say the right has badly misread him. Prepare for a very Smithy tug of war. (Part 2 of “In Search of the Real Adam Smith.”)