Western Civilization II / Unit 6 WC2 0509 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Montesquieu and the Separation of Powers
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The idea
The anchor never names Montesquieu. The witness does: in The Spirit of the Laws of seventeen forty-eight he argued for a constitutional government with powers separated among legislative, executive and judicial branches, an idea the American framers adopted with enthusiasm.
In practice
Liberty as a matter of structure, not of virtue.
Where people slip
This entry rests on the witness texts, not the anchor.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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