The legacy of
Montesquieu, one of the key philosophers of the Enlightenment, is remarkably
diverse. In 1721 he published Persian Letters; in 1734 Considerations
on the Causes of the Greatness of the Romans and their Decline, a
formidable work of history; and in 1748 The
Spirit of the Laws, which represents the essence of many years of research
and the fruits of his political and historical reflections. From these works,
Montesquieu appears at times as a man of politics, at times as a historian, and
at times as a law-maker and jurist. Such range, however, does not detract from
the unity of his thought and the connectedness of his reflections, since in all
his works he strove to understand the laws governing societies and organizing the
course of the phenomena of history and nature, and to observe their effect on
human life. In his first work, Persian Letters, Montesquieu dealt with
the relationship of religion and law. He established the relativism of beliefs
and a topography of precepts and laws, called for religious tolerance, and
produced a pluralist discourse for understanding religious and cultural
difference. In the second work, Considerations on the Causes of the
Greatness of the Romans and their Decline, he dealt with law in its relation
to the movement of history, revealing the laws that govern the progress and
retrogression of states and civilizations. In his greatest and most renowned
work, The Spirit of the Laws, he dealt with law in its relation with
various factors that define general laws such as climate, territory,
population, economy, morality, religion, and power. These factors combine the
material with the ideal, the conceptual with the tangible. They also reveal the
dialectical nature of Montesquieu’s thought. He tried to found a comprehensive
positivist approach to human and religious history and formulate ideas on the
future of institutions and their transformation in real history.