Baron Montesquieu's groundbreaking political treatise is published here complete with every part's original notes. Composed over the course of twenty-one years, The Spirit of Laws is a writing of enormous depth, scope and significance. The text itself is comprised of thirty-one distinct books, each of which discusses a specific legal topic in detail. Scrutiny is directed toward law in day to day life, criminality, the law's relation to women, political liberties, and slavery and servitude to name but a few examples. The individual laws in relation to different arms of government, their implementation, and how they should ideally work in practise are detailed. Different types of governance, and the relation of law to wars of aggression and defence between foreign powers, are also discussed.

The Spirit of Laws, first published in 1750, is a detailed treatise on the structures and theory of government by French political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu. Unlike his well-loved Persian Letters, The Spirit of Laws scandalized the French-it was even banned by the Roman Catholic Church. The fact that it is hardly dated to modern readers is a testament to how revolutionary it must have seemed 250 years ago. Among its comparisons of different forms of governments, such as monarchies, despotic regimes, and republics, is the now-famous section on Montesquieu's concept of the separation of powers, dividing the ruling body into legislative, executive, and judicial branches.Also included is the author's thinking on slavery, religion in government, families and censuses, the influence of climate on politics and culture, and the making of laws. A powerful influence on the framers of the U.S. Constitution, this classic work will appeal to history buffs and anyone interested in the roots of modern political theory and government.CHARLES-LOUIS DE SECONDAT, BARON DE MONTESQUIEU (1689-1755), born in the South of France and often known simply as Montesquieu, was a political philosopher and social commentator known for his influential political views, especially for his "separation of power" theory, still used today in constitutions around the world. Some of his best-known work, the satirical Persian Letters, which made fun of life in Paris under Louis XIV, delighted France in the 1720s

Baron Montesquieu's groundbreaking political treatise is published here complete with every part's original notes. Composed over the course of twenty-one years, The Spirit of Laws is a writing of enormous depth, scope and significance. The text itself is comprised of thirty-one distinct books, each of which discusses a specific legal topic in detail. Scrutiny is directed toward law in day to day life, criminality, the law's relation to women, political liberties, and slavery and servitude to name but a few examples. The individual laws in relation to different arms of government, their implementation, and how they should ideally work in practise are detailed. Different types of governance, and the relation of law to wars of aggression and defence between foreign powers, are also discussed.

The Spirit of Laws, first published in 1750, is a detailed treatise on the structures and theory of government by French political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu. Unlike his well-loved Persian Letters, The Spirit of Laws scandalized the French-it was even banned by the Roman Catholic Church. The fact that it is hardly dated to modern readers is a testament to how revolutionary it must have seemed 250 years ago. Among its comparisons of different forms of governments, such as monarchies, despotic regimes, and republics, is the now-famous section on Montesquieu's concept of the separation of powers, dividing the ruling body into legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Also included is the author's thinking on slavery, religion in government, families and censuses, the influence of climate on politics and culture, and the making of laws. A powerful influence on the framers of the U.S. Constitution, this classic work will appeal to history buffs and anyone interested in the roots of modern political theory and government. CHARLES-LOUIS DE SECONDAT, BARON DE MONTESQUIEU (1689-1755), born in the South of France and often known simply as Montesquieu, was a political philosopher and social commentator known for his influential political views, especially for his "separation of power" theory, still used today in constitutions around the world. Some of his best-known work, the satirical Persian Letters, which made fun of life in Paris under Louis XIV, delighted France in the 1720s.