France became a part of a huge advancement in techonology and knowledge in the age of the Enlightenment. Throughout Europe, new ideas were being spread and the Church was fading from power. People called philosophes were starting to become popular with their ideas that were proved by reasoning and facts, other than ideas by the Church that were proved by faith. Some of these important philosophes were people like John Locke, Hobbes, Montesquieu, Voltaire, and Rousseau.
John Locke was a philosophe who started the ideas of the Enlightenment. He set forth the ideal of human nature that humans were moral and reasonable. Locke stated that the people needed natural rights, or rights of life, liberty, and property. Locke rejected the absolute monarchy governments and called for a democracy to give the people more freedom and equality. His beliefs influenced many countries in the present and the future, including the United States.
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His ideas contrasted with Locke’s though because he believed in a strong government and absolute monarchy. Hobbes opposed Locke and said his idea would create chaos, because people are naturally selfish and greedy. Thomas believed that a strong government was needed to enforce order in society. In Hobbes “social contract”, people sacrifice their freedom for the greater good to have a better society.
Next, Baron de Montesquieu was a philosophe who studied the governments of Europe. He criticized absolute monarchy and his ideas lead to new forms of government. Montesquieu created the three branches government, because he believed the best way to keep the people’s liberty was to split up power among the government. He made three branches, legislative, executive, and judicial, which all had separate functions and jobs to do. This system later became known as checks and balances, and it framed the United States