Montesquieu Quotes & Sayings

History is full of religious wars; but, we must take care to observe, it was not the multiplicity of religions that produced these wars, it was the intolerating spirit which animated that one which thought she had the power of governing. — Montesquieu

I have always observed that to succeed in the world one should appear like a fool but be wise. — Montesquieu

If triangles made a god, they would give him three sides. — Montesquieu

[245] "In large and populous cities," says the author of the Fable of the Bees, i, p. 133, "they wear clothes above their rank, and, consequently, have the pleasure of being esteemed by a vast majority, not as what they are, but what they appear to be. — Montesquieu

Very good laws may be ill timed. — Montesquieu

I've never known any distress that an hour's reading didn't relieve. — Montesquieu

When the savages of Louisiana are desirous of fruit, they cut the tree to the root and gather the fruit. This is an emblem of despotic government. — Montesquieu

My dear Usbek, when women feel, as they lose their attractiveness, that their end is coming in advance, they would like to go backwards to youth again. How could they possibly not attempt to deceive other people? - they make every effort to deceive themselves, and to escape from the most distressing thought we can have. — Montesquieu

The Tyranny of a prince in an oligarchy
is not so dangerous to the public welfare as the apathy of a citizen in a democracy. — Montesquieu

We receive three educations, one from our parents, one from our school masters, and one from the world. The third contradicts all that the first two teach us. — Montesquieu

They who love to inform themselves, are never idle. Though I have no business of consequence to take care of, I am nevertheless continually employed. I spend my life in examining things: I write down in the evening whatever I have remarked, what I have seen, and what I have heard in the day: every thing engages my attention, and every thing excites my wonder: I am like an infant, whose organs, as yet tender, are strongly affected by the slightest objects. — Montesquieu

Virtue has need of limits. — Montesquieu

In vain do we seek tranquility in the desert; temptations are always with us; our passions, represented by the demons, never let us alone: those monsters created by the heart, those illusions produced by the mind, those vain specters that are our errors and our lies always appear before us to seduce us; they attack us even in our fasting or our mortifications, in other words, in our very strength. — Montesquieu

If I knew of something that could serve my nation but would ruin another, I would not propose it to my prince, for I am first a man and only then a Frenchman ... because I am necessarily a man, and only accidentally am I French. — Montesquieu

A truly virtuous man would come to the aid of the most distant stranger as quickly as to his own friend.
If men were perfectly virtuous, they wouldn't have friends. — Montesquieu

The history of commerce is that of the communication of the people. — Montesquieu

An author is a fool who, not content with boring those he lives with, insists on boring future generations. — Montesquieu

Rhedi: I am always afraid that they will eventually succeed in discovering some secret which will provide a quicker way of making men die, and exterminate whole countries and nations.
Usbek: No, if such a fateful invention came to be discovered, it would soon be banned by international law; by the unanimous consent of every country the discovery would be buried. — Montesquieu

What I have here advanced is confirmed by the unanimous testimony of historians, and is extremely agreeable to the nature of things. For it is clear that in a monarchy, where he who commands the execution of the laws generally thinks himself above them, there is less need of virtue than in a popular government, where the person entrusted with the execution of the laws is sensible of his being subject to their direction. — Montesquieu

If only we wanted to be happy, it would be easy; but we want to be happier than other people, which is difficult, since we think them happier than they are. — Montesquieu

[92] Plato, in his fourth book of Laws, says that the praefectures of music and gymnic exercises are the most important employments in the city; and, in his Republic, iii, Damon will tell you, says he, what sounds are capable of corrupting the mind with base sentiments, or of inspiring the contrary virtues. — Montesquieu

With truths of a certain kind, it is not enough to make them appear convincing: one must also make them felt. Of such kind are moral truths. — Montesquieu

Nothing is a greater obstacle to our progress in knowledge, than a bad performance of a celebrated author; because, before we instruct we must begin with undeceiving. — Montesquieu

Democratic and aristocratic states are not in their own nature free. Political liberty is to be found only in moderate governments; and even in these it is not always found. It is there only when there is no abuse of power. But constant experience shows us that every man invested with power is apt to abuse it, and to carry his authority as far as it will go. — Montesquieu

If one only wished to be happy, this could be easily accomplished; but we wish to be happier than other people, and this is always difficult, for we believe others to be happier than they are. — Montesquieu

What unhappy beings men are! They constantly waver between false hopes and silly fears, and instead of relying on reason they create monsters to frighten themselves with, and phantoms which lead them astray. — Montesquieu

I have never known any distress that an hour's reading did not relieve. — Montesquieu

One more organ or one less in our body would give us a different intelligence. In fact, all the established laws as to why our body is a certain way would be different if our body were not that way. — Montesquieu

Nature, in her wisdom, seems to have arranged it so that men's stupidity should be ephemeral, and books make them immortal. A fool ought to be content having exacerbated everyone around him, but he insists tormenting future generations. — Montesquieu

The right of conquest is not a right. A society can be founded only with the consent of its members. If it is destroyed by conquest, the nation becomes free again; it is not a new society, and if the conquerer tries to create one it will be a dictatorship. — Montesquieu

Useless laws weaken the necessary laws. — Montesquieu

A conqueror, I say, can change the course of everything, and muffled tyranny is the first thing which is liable to violence. — Montesquieu

Government should be set up so that no man need be afraid of another. — Montesquieu

The political liberty, of the subject, (separation of powers), is a tranquility of mind arising from the opinion each person has of [their] safety. In order to have this liberty. It is requisite the government be so constituted as one [person] need not to be afraid of another.
Baron de Montesquieu,
Spirit of laws
1748 — Montesquieu

There is no greater tyranny than that which is perpetrated under the shield of the law and in the name of justice. — Montesquieu

It is not the young people that degenerate; they are not spoiled till those of maturer age are already sunk into corruption. — Montesquieu

Christians are beginning to lose the spirit of intolerance which animated them ... They have realized that zeal for the advancement of religion is different from a due attachment to it; and that in order to love it and fulfil its behests, it is not necessary to hate and persecute those who are opposed to it. — Montesquieu

The success of most things depends upon knowing how long it will take to succeed. — Montesquieu

Talent is a gift which God has given us secretly, and which we reveal without perceiving it. — Montesquieu

I can assure you that no kingdom has ever had as many civil wars as the kingdom of Christ. — Montesquieu

Solemnity is the shield of idiots — Montesquieu

The desire for glory is no different from that instinct for preservation that is common to all creatures. It is as if we enhance our being if we can gain a place in the memory of others; it is a new life that we acquire, which becomes as precious to us as the one we received from Heaven. — Montesquieu

Every man is capable of doing good to another, but to contribute to the happiness of an entire society is to become akin to the gods — Montesquieu

Countries are well cultivated, not as they are fertile, but as they are free. — Montesquieu

When the laws have ceased to be executed, as this can only come from the corruption of the republic, the state is already lost. — Montesquieu

For myself, I would rather not write history than write it for the purpose of following the prejudices and passions of the times.

Here, someone makes the Capetians descend from the Merovingians; there, someone else has it that the name very Christian has always been applied to the {French} princes.

They don't form a system after reading history; they begin with the system and then search for the proofs. — Montesquieu

Mediocrity is a hand-rail. — Montesquieu

Do you think that God will punish them for not practicing a religion which he did not reveal to them? — Montesquieu

A person of my acquaintance said: ...
Study has always been for me the sovereign remedy against life's unpleasantness, since I have never experienced any sorrow that an hour's reading did not eliminate. — Montesquieu