About the Author

Ralph Raico is professor of European history at Buffalo State College and a Senior Fellow at the Ludwig von Mises Institute. He received his Ph.D. under F. A. Hayek and is a specialist on the history of liberty, the liberal tradition in Europe, and the relationship between war and the rise of the state. He is also the recipient of the 2000 Gary G. Schlarbaum Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Cause of Liberty.

A Libertarian Rebuttal

Ralph Raico

Copyright © 2010 by the Ludwig von Mises Institute

Published under the Creative Commons Attribution License 3.0.

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

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ISBN: 978-1-61016-096-4

Dedicated to the memory of Murray N. Rothbard Lifelong mentor and friend

by Robert Higgs

The King of Prussia, Frederick II (“the Great”), confessed that he had seized the province of Silesia from the Empress Maria Theresa in 1740 because, as a newcomer to the throne, he had to make a name for himself. This initiated a war with Austria that developed into a world-wide war (in North America, the French and Indian War), and went on to 1763. Of course, many tens of thousands died in that series of wars.

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 2