Adam Smith was born in 1723, in Kirkcaldy, Scotland and was raised by his widowed mother. Smith attended the University of Glasgow and Balliol College and graduated with knowledge of European literature. In 1748, Smith began holding lectures at the University of Edinburgh. Soon, he became a professor at Glasgow University teaching philosophy and published The Theory of Moral Sentiments. In 1763, Smith began tutoring the young duke Buccleuch, stepson of David Hume. With his student, he travelled through France and Switzerland where he came in contact with Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Francois Quesnay, and Anne-Robert-Jacques Turgot. After his service with the duke, Smith wrote the Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776) which states the need for free trade and that the invisible hand of competition should control the economy. Smith opposed mercantilism and supported competition. Smith gained a great deal of fame through The Wealth of Nations which promotes self-interest and a capitalistic economy. In his later years, Smith became one of the founding members of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. However, Smith passed away on July 17, 1790 due to an illness. Adam Smith is known to have changed the European economy through his works. His ideas reflect the conditions of Enlightenment period.