Question

The Enlightenment can be said to have begun philosophically with thinkers like John Locke and Thomas Hobbs who believed that reason was the gateway to liberty and contentment, not mysticism and religion. These thinkers saw government as a social contract with the people based on reason. This emphasis on reason and social contracts led to at least five revolutions during the 18th century. Name two.

Answer 1

Two of the revolutions that were motivated to a large extent by the Enlightenment were the Revolutionary War in the Thirteen Colonies (1775-1783) and the French Revolution (1789-1799).

Moreover, these two revolutions shared many elements that originated in the ideas of these Enlightenment philosophers. Both revolutions wanted to create a system in which people were able to participate in politics. They also believed that citizens had the right to remove people from government if they violated the "social contract." Finally, they believed that laws should emanate from reason and popular will, as opposed to religion or tradition.