The Life of Charles Montesquieu

By James Langer

Early Life

• Montesquieu was born on January 18th, 1689 in Bordeaux, France.

• His parents were of noble decent and thus the family was wealthy. The mother eventually brought barony to the family.

• Though his family was rich, he was taken care of by a poor family.

Education• In 1700 Montesquieu went to

the Oratorian Collège de Juilly, at Meaux, where he gained a good education.

• He studied law in Bordeaux in 1705 and was then admitted to practice for the Parliament of Bordeaux in 1708.

• He spent the next 5 years studying in Paris. He gain a dislike for the way of life in the Capitol, expressed in his Persian Letters.

• In 1713 Montisquieu's father died and he became the Baron of La Brede.

• 2 years later he married Jeanne de Lartigue, a rich Protestant woman.

• Montesquieu had 3 children with her: Jean-Baptiste (1716), Marie (1717) and Denise (1727).

• For eleven years he worked for the Tournelle, the Parlement's criminal division, hearing legal proceedings, supervising prisons, and administering punishments such as torture.

• During these 11 years he kept studying at the academy of Bordeaux , writing about science and philosophy.

• One of his most famous pieces was the Persian Letters, which he published anonymously in Amsterdam in 1721, was critical of the Church and the way of life of the rich in France.

• The piece made him instantly famous as it was a majour success.

• He continued to be active in Paris, often working on behalf of the Academy and the Parliament of Bordeaux. He also wrote a few other minor works.

• In 1725 he resigned from Parliament and in 1728 Montesquieu was elected to the Académie Française and was sent to travel around Europe.

• He ended up spending 2 years in England, where he was much impressed by their political system.

• In 1748, in Geneva, Montesquieu published The Spirit of the Laws, again anonymously.

• It was a success, but was criticized by many French religious authorities and was banned by the Roman Catholic Church. This lead to the publish of the Defence of the Spirit of Laws in 1750.

• Much of Montisquieu’s work was very influential, and had much influence on early Americans. Montisquieu’s idea that government should focus on people living without fear of others had much effect on American Founders.

• After completing The Spirit of the Laws, Montesquieu grew ill and began going blind.

• He spent the last years of his life reading and studying.

• In February of 1755, Montesquieu was struck by a lung infection and on the 10th of Febuary, at the age of 66, he died.

The End