The Production of Security

Written by Gustave de Molinari in 1849, the essay argues that the provision of security—like police and defense—should be handled by competing private companies in a free market rather than a state monopoly. It represents one of the earliest formal arguments for privatized law enforcement.

Molinari was a prominent 19th-century Belgian economist who is widely considered the founder of anarcho-capitalist theory. He spent much of his career writing for and editing the *Journal des Économistes* in France.

It is considered a foundational text of anarcho-capitalism because it was the first time an economist logically applied free-market principles to the provision of government services. Molinari's 1849 argument shocked his classical liberal peers by taking laissez-faire capitalism to its ultimate conclusion.

He suggests that consumers would voluntarily pay a premium to competing security agencies, who would have a financial incentive to protect their clients and resolve disputes peacefully. Under this system, agencies would agree to arbitrate conflicts between their respective clients to avoid constant, costly warfare.