Montesquieu
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the ideas of the French political philosopher (1689-1755) whose work on liberty and republicanism, banned at home, influenced the US constitution.
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the ideas of Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (1689-1755) whose works on liberty, monarchism, despotism, republicanism and the separation of powers were devoured by intellectuals across Europe and New England in the eighteenth century, transforming political philosophy and influencing the American Constitution. He argued that an individual's liberty needed protection from the arm of power, checking that by another power; where judicial, executive and legislative power were concentrated in the hands of one figure, there could be no personal liberty.
With
Richard Bourke
Professor in the History of Political Thought at Queen Mary, University of London
Rachel Hammersley
Senior Lecturer in Intellectual History at Newcastle University
And
Richard Whatmore
Professor of Modern History at the University of St Andrews and Director of the St Andrews Institute of Intellectual History
Producer: Simon Tillotson.
Last on
LINKS AND FURTHER READING
Ìý
READING LIST:
John Churton Collins, Voltaire, Montesquieu and Rousseau in England (first published 1886; Forgotten Books, 2018)Ìý
Mark Goldie and Robert Wokler (ed.), The Cambridge History of Eighteenth-Century Political Thought (Cambridge University Press, 2006), especially ‘The comparative study of regimes and societies’ by Melvyn Richter and ‘The spirit of nations’ by Sylvana Tomaselli
Montesquieu (trans. C. J. Betts), Persian Letters (first published 1973; Penguin, 1993)
Montesquieu (trans. David Lowenthal), Considerations on the Causes of the Greatness of the Romans and their Decline (first published 1965; Hackett, 1999)
Montesquieu (ed. Anne Cohler, Basia Miller and Harold Stone), The Spirit of the Laws (Cambridge University Press, 1989)
Melvyn Richter, The Political Theory of Montesquieu (Cambridge University Press, 1977)
Robert Shackleton, Montesquieu: A Critical Biography (Oxford University Press, 1961)
Judith N. Shklar, Montesquieu (Oxford University Press, 1987)
Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Presenter | Melvyn Bragg |
| Interviewed Guest | Richard Bourke |
| Interviewed Guest | Rachel Hammersley |
| Interviewed Guest | Richard Whatmore |
| Producer | Simon Tillotson |
Broadcasts
- Thu 14 Jun 2018 09:00Â鶹ÊÓƵAV Radio 4
- Thu 14 Jun 2018 21:30Â鶹ÊÓƵAV Radio 4
Featured in...
![]()
18th Century—In Our Time
Browse the 18th Century era within the In Our Time archive.
![]()
Philosophy—In Our Time
From Altruism to Wittgenstein, philosophers, theories and key themes.
![]()
History—In Our Time
Historical themes, events and key individuals from Akhenaten to Xenophon.
In Our Time podcasts
Download programmes from the huge In Our Time archive.
The In Our Time Listeners' Top 10
If you’re new to In Our Time, this is a good place to start.
Arts and Ideas podcast
Download the best of Radio 3's Free Thinking programme.
Podcast
-
![]()
In Our Time
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the ideas, people and events that have shaped our world.
