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Book/Printed Material Spirit of the Laws. De l'Esprit des lois

About this Item

Title

  • Spirit of the Laws.

Other Title

  • De l'Esprit des lois

Summary

  • Published in 1748, condemned by the Catholic Church in 1751, Montesquieu's masterpiece, De l'Esprit des lois (Spirit of the laws) marked a turning point in the European Age of Enlightenment. It announced the new critical understanding of acquired knowledge that was also reflected in Buffon's Histoire naturelle (Natural history) and Diderot and d'Alembert's Encyclopédie (Encyclopedia). The depth of the analysis and the skill of presentation resulted in Montesquieu's work having considerable influence on political thought in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is divided into 31 books subdivided into short chapters, which are written in a clean and incisive style, with analytical passages interspersed with anecdotes and historical facts. Montesquieu replaced the traditional, purely political classification of laws with a more concrete conception, which he based on a typology of political orders (despotic, monarchical, and republican). He associated the principles of governance and the constitutions of countries with the physical, moral, economic, and geographic causes that influenced the creation and evolution of laws. Presented here is an incomplete manuscript of the penultimate version of the text prior to publication, from the hand of several secretaries, with notes and passages signed by Montesquieu. The division of chapters differs significantly from that in the original publication. The manuscript also includes several pages from a dozen different writings by Montesquieu, produced by the secretaries that he used during his frequent periods of near-total blindness.

Names

  • Montesquieu, Charles de Secondat, baron de, 1689-1755 Author.

Created / Published

  • [place of publication not identified] : [publisher not identified], 1748.

Headings

  • -  France
  • -  1748
  • -  Jurisprudence
  • -  Law -- Philosophy
  • -  Politics and government
  • -  State, The

Notes

  • -  Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
  • -  Original resource extent: Paper, 5 volumes : Calfskin binding ; 25 x 17 centimeters.
  • -  Original resource at: National Library of France.
  • -  Content in French.
  • -  Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.

Medium

  • 1 online resource.

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2021667563

Online Format

  • compressed data
  • pdf
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

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Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Montesquieu, Charles De Secondat, Baron De, Author. Spirit of the Laws. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified, 1748] Pdf. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021667563/.

APA citation style:

Montesquieu, C. D. S. (1748) Spirit of the Laws. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified] [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021667563/.

MLA citation style:

Montesquieu, Charles De Secondat, Baron De, Author. Spirit of the Laws. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified, 1748] Pdf. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021667563/>.