Montesquieu's views and studies of governments led to him to believe that government corruption was probable if a system of government didn't include balance of powers. He conceived the idea of separating government authority into the three major branches: executive, legislative and judicial.
Montesquieu was a French lawyer, man of letters, and one of the most influential political philosophers of the Age of Enlightenment. His political theory work, particularly the idea of separation of powers, shaped the modern democratic government.
