Some people will even mention Thomas Jefferson or Benjamin Franklin, who were the founding fathers of America. They were the ones who inspired the founding of America on the basis of principles that a government should be just and treat its citizens fairly. But they didn’t come up with these ideas by themselves. Many people influenced them. Montesquieu was probably the most famous of all of them.
Montesquieu, a Frenchman born in 1689, was born in the Chateau de La Brede castle in France. Charles-Louis de Secondat is his birthname. Throughout his long life, he was an advocate, a political philosopher, and an writer. Both of his parents came from noble families. His father Jacques de Secondat served in the army and his mother Marie Francoise de Pensel inherited wealth. Montesquieu’s mother died at age seven and his father sent him to Juilly’s Catholic College. From 1700 to 1705, he spent five years at the school that was designed for French nobility. In 1705 he moved to Bordeaux where he studied law and practised it at the university. In 1705, when he had completed his studies, he would have been 22 years old. After his father’s death in 1713, he became the ward of Baron de Montesquieu, and later the advisor to the Parliament of Bordeaux. In his early years, he experienced many important events that would have a lasting impact on his writings. These include the French Revolution as well as the joining of England with Scotland and becoming The Kingdom Of Great Britain. The events that took place in these countries sparked a lifelong fascination with politics and societal law.
In 1715, he married Jeanne de Lartigue a Protestant. They had two sons and one daughter together. He was elected to the Academy of Bordeaux during this period. Montesquieu received a lot of money from his uncle, who died in 1716. He also got the title Baron de La Brede and de Montesquieu as well as an important position in the French government. He gave up his dream of becoming a lawyer to study and write in Paris. He studied Roman Politics, Geology, Biology, Physics, and Physics. He wrote many books criticizing French society and received praise from Britain and Europe. He was known to have introduced the term “despotism”, which he used in many of his works.
In 1721, he published The Persian Letters. Montesquieu’s popularity soared after his anonymous book was discovered. It was a satirical novel about two Persian traders who travel through Europe, mocking and criticizing its flawed government and society. De I’esprit des loix (1748) is perhaps his most important work. The book argued against the power held by the monarchy as well as the church, and promoted ideas like constitutional government. The book introduced three classes in French society, Aristocracy Monarchy Commons. He also believed that all three branches of government must be interdependent so that no one branch can have more power. Montesquieu’s concern for French social classes was expressed in his book. He was particularly concerned about the middle or noble class. Montesquieu feared that the nobles and middle classes would slowly dissolve, so he wanted to maintain them to keep the monarchy at bay. He introduced his belief in three types of government: monarchies, a government that was ruled through a royal lineage passed down over generations, republics, a group of elected leaders, and dictatorships, a single person ruling a country. De I’esprit des loix gained popularity in Europe and caused people to reflect on their political systems. James Madison and Catherine The Great were among the many famous people who quoted it. The book, which was widely read by the public, was put on the list of forbidden books three years after it was published. The book’s view of the government, the administrative, and sovereign powers was not compatible with the Estates of the Reign, their own system of government. The book has been named one of the greatest French works. Montesquieu was also a prolific writer. His other works include Considerations On The Causes of the Greatness of the Romans. This book discussed the Romans’ government, their politics, and the downfall of the Romans. Genuine History is a novel based on a character who has lived as many animals. In addition, he is credited for being a major contributor in the development of political, cultural and social anthropology. He was an influential political figure of the time. His ideas even influenced founding fathers to create democracy. He believed that governments were to be designed so that nobody would be scared of anyone else. This reminded the founding fathers that power should be distributed among many people and not one. Thomas Paine as well Edmund Burke are other notables he has influenced.
Montesquieu decided to devote his remaining years to studying and writing. In 1721 he sold his position of president of Bordeaux Parliament and was able to do this. He traveled Europe to gain more knowledge and learned about politics in places such as Germany, England and Austria. As he grew old, his sight slowly deteriorated and he became blind before he passed away in France from a fever. He was a great thinker who left behind a vision of what modern democracy and government could be.
