The essay discusses the historiographical thesis, still hegemonic, according to which Adam Smith was a convinced supporter of the progressive nature of human history. From this perspective it reiterates, first of all, the conjectural status of the stadial theory exposed in the Lectures on Jurisprudence; then examines the vibrant denunciation of the human costs of modernization contained in the Wealth of Nations. The last part of the paper finally addresses the vexed question of the (alleged) theological inspiration of Smith’s historical-social analysis, which is still
the subject of a heated interpretative dispute today.
Keywords: Adam Smith, Progress, Conjectural History, Stadial Theory, Providence.