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A Defence of the Spirit of Laws

Montesquieu

Thomas Nugent (1777)

Montesquieu's 1750 reply to critics—chiefly the Jansenist journalists who attacked The Spirit of Laws as irreligious—the Defence answers their objections point by point and appends explanations of contested passages. Written with wit and controlled indignation, it clarifies his method and defends the work's treatment of religion, climate, and morality.

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Contents

1. Part I
2. Part II
   1. Of the Counsels of Religion.
3. Part III