Ideas · c. 1687–1789 (Encyclopédie 1751–1772)
The Enlightenment and the Encyclopédie
Paris, France
The Enlightenment, an intellectual movement that emerged in Western and Central Europe in the late 17th century and peaked in the 18th, championed reason, evidence and the scientific method, and promoted individual liberty, religious tolerance, progress and natural rights. Its landmark was the Encyclopédie, edited by Denis Diderot (with Jean le Rond d'Alembert until 1759) and published in France from 1751 to 1772: 28 volumes with some 71,818 articles, which Diderot hoped would 'change the way people think'.
Why it mattered
Enlightenment arguments for constitutional government, natural rights and the separation of church and state were a key inspiration for the American and French revolutions and remain foundations of modern democracy.
Elsewhere
Leading figures included John Locke, Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, David Hume, Adam Smith, Benjamin Franklin and Immanuel Kant.
Related
- The world in 1715: Peace of Utrecht chapter
- Glorious Revolution and the Bill of Rights previous moment · 1688–1689
- The Seven Years' War next moment · 1756–1763