Enlightenment

Following up on the Scientific Revolution came the Enlightenment. The Scientific Revolution describes everything as having a rational base and everything abided by the law of nature. So, people started to apply this socially. People did not see the king or monarchies as being enlightened since they were always searching for glory. The church was not seen as being enlightened either because it followed the traditional way of ruling.

Montesquieu believed that there "Ð'...are the necessary relations arising form the nature of things. In this sense, all being have their lawsÐ'...(The Spirit of Laws)." Every entity in existence has laws (including God, animals, etc.). These laws describe the relations between everything. Man is also governed by invariable laws, which are of God, but also from philosophers who teach "by the laws of morality," and legislators who teach man now to obey by "political and civil laws" of society. Breaking the laws made for man is a basis that was used for revolution.

John Locke was a leading thinker for the Enlightenment. He believed that "all men are naturally in, and that is, a state of perfect freedom to order their actions (The Second Treatise on Government)." He believed that a contract was formed between man and the government to protect these natural rights of freedom. Man had the option of giving up their individual freedoms to live safeguarded by a government. However, man is allowed to dissolve the government if they impose on their lives, liberties, or property.

This is the exact reasoning the Americans used to break away from England in the American Revolution. It is stated in the Declaration of Independence that "Ð'...they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." They believe that England violated their social contract, as described by Locke, by not treating them fairly. The French also had their revolution with the "Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizens." In it, it also referred to Locke and other Enlightenment thinkers by saying "... the following sacred rights of men and of citizensÐ'... these limits are determinable only by law."

Locke, Montesquieu, and other Enlightenment thinkers all greatly impacted the world. With their ideas stemming from the Scientific Revolution, they brought