Was Montesquieu a Liberal Republican?

Abstract

AbstractThis paper sets out to criticize Thomas Pangle's and Paul Rahe's reading ofThe Spirit of the Lawsas a contribution to liberal republicanism, arguing instead that Montesquieu's text is better understood as a defense of liberal monarchism. Pangle's and Rahe's interpretation ofThe Spirit of the Lawsas an unequivocal defense of the English modern republic is wrongheaded. Montesquieu in fact spent much more of his time and energy outlining another and very different political model, moderate monarchy, embodied not by England but by the government under which he lived—France. This conclusion has profound implications for our understanding not just ofThe Spirit of the Lawsbut also of the history of early modern political thought more generally speaking, showing that the political debate of this period cannot be reduced to a struggle between classical and modern republicans.