A Commentary and Review of Montesquieu’s ’Spirit of Laws’

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53 chapters · 90,853 words · free to read here

1. To his fellow citizens of the United States of America.
2. Preliminary Observations
3. Book I: Of Laws in General
4. Book II: Of Laws Originating Directly from the Nature of the Government.
5. Book III: Of the Principles of the Three Forms of Government.
6. Book IV: The Laws Relating To Education, Should Be Congenial with the Principles of the Government.
7. Book V: Laws Formed by the Legislature Should Be Consistent with the Principles of the Government.
8. Book VI: Consequences of the Principles of Different Governments, in Relation to the Simplicity of Civil and Criminal Laws, the Forms of Juridical Proceedings, and the Apportionment of Punishments.
9. Book VII: Consequences of the Different Principles of the Three Forms of Government, Relative to Sumptuary Laws, to Luxury, and to the Condition of Women.
10. Book VIII: Of the Corruption of the Principle in Each of the Three Forms of Government.
11. Book IX: Of Laws Relative to the Defensive Force.
12. Book X: Of Laws Relative to the Offensive Force.
13. Book XI: Of the Laws Which Establish Public Liberty, In Relation to the Constitution.
14. Chap. I: Is the Problem Solved, As To the Best Means of Distributing the Power of Society, So As to Be Most Favorable to Liberty?
15. Chap. II: How Can the Proposed Problem Be Solved?
16. Book XII: Of Laws That Establish Political Liberty in Relation to the Citizen.
17. On the Twelve First Books of the Spirit of Laws.
18. Book XIII: Of the Relation Which Taxes, and the Amount of the Public Revenue, Have to Public Liberty.
19. Book XVII How the Laws of Political Servitude Relate to the Climate.
20. Book XVIII: Of Laws in Relation to the Nature of the Soil.
21. Book XIX: Of Laws in Relation to the Principles which Form the General Dispositions, Morals, and Manners of a Nation.
22. Book XXI Of Laws in Relation to Commerce, Considered with Reference to the Revolutions It Has Undergone.
23. Book XXII: Of Laws in Relation to the Use of Money.
24. Book XXIII: Of Laws in Relation to Population
25. Book XXV Of Laws in Relation to a Religions Establishment, and Its Effects on External Policy.
26. Book XXVI: Of Laws in Relation to the Nature of Things upon which They Decide.
27. Book XXVIII Of the Origin and Revolutions of Civil Law among the Franks.
28. Book XXIX: Of the Manner in which Laws Should Be Composed.
29. Book XXXI Theory of Feudal Laws, Relative to the Revolutions of Monarchy.
30. Chap. II.... Continuation of the same subject.
31. Chap. III.... That laws which appear to deviate from the intentions of the legislator, are often conformable thereto.
32. Chap. IV.... Of laws which clash with the views of the legislator.
33. Chap. V.... Continuation of the sane subject.
34. Chap. VI.... Laws which appear to be the same have not uniformly the same effect.
35. Chap. VII.... Continuation of the same subject. The necessity of composing laws in a proper manner.
36. Chap. VIII.... Laws which appear the same have not always been established on the same motives.
37. Chap. IX.... The Greek and Roman laws punished suicide from different motives.
38. Chap. X.... Laws which appear contradictory, sometimes originate in the same spirit.
39. Chap. XI.... How shall we be able to compare and judge between two laws.
40. Chap. XII.... Laws which appear the same, are sometimes really different.
41. Chap. XIII.... We should not separate the laws from the purposes for which they were established: of the Roman laws against theft.
42. Chap. XIV.... Laws should not be separated from the circumstances in which they were established.
43. Chap. XV.... It is sometimes proper that the law shall correct itself.
44. Chap. XVI.... Matters to be observed in composing laws.
45. Chap. XVII.... Bad manner of enacting laws.
46. Chap. XVIII.... Of ideas of uniformity.
47. Chap. XIX.... Of legislators.
48. Advertisement
49. Letter I.: Letter of Helvetius to President Montesquieu
50. Letter II.: Helvetius to A. M. Saurin.
51. About Liberty Fund
52. The Online Library of Liberty
53. Copyright Information