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The Spirit of the Laws

  
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The Translator to the Reader
  
CONTENTS
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PREFACE
  
ADVERTISEMENT

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Book I. Of Laws in General.
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Book II. Of Laws Directly Derived from the Nature of Government.
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Book III. Of the Principles of the Three Kinds of Government.
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Book IV. That the Laws of Education Ought to Be in Relation to the Principles of Government.
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Book V. That the Laws Given by the Legislator Ought to Be in Relation to the Principle of Government.
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Book VI. Consequences of the Principles of Different Governments with Respect to the Simplicity of Civil and Criminal Laws, the Form of Judgments, and the Inflicting of Punishments.
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Book VII. Consequences of the Different Principles of the Three Governments with Respect to Sumptuary Laws, Luxury, and the Condition of Women.
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Book VIII. Of the Corruption of the Principles of the Three Governments.
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Book IX., Of Laws in the Relation They Bear to a Defensive Force.
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Book X. Of Laws in the Relation They Bear to Offensive Force.
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Book XI. Of the Laws Which Establish Political Liberty, with Regard to the Consti- tution.
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Book XII. Of the Laws That Form Political Liberty, in Relation to the Subject.
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Book XIII. Of the Relation Which the Levying of Taxes and the Greatness of the Public Revenues Bear to Liberty.
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Book XIV. Of Laws in Relation to the Nature of the Climate.
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Book XV. In What Manner the Laws of Civil Slavery Relate to the Nature of the Climate.
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Book XVI. How the Laws of Domestic Slavery Bear a Relation to the Nature of the Climate.
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Book XVII., How the Laws of Political Servitude Bear a Relation to the Nature of the Climate.
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Book XVIII. Of Laws in the Relation They Bear to the Nature of the Soil.
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Book XIX. Of Laws in Relation to the Principles Which Form the General Spirit, Morals, and Customs of a Nation.
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Book XX. Of Laws in Relation to Commerce, Considered in its Nature and Distinctions.
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Book XXI. Of Laws in relation to Commerce, considered in the Revolutions it has met with in the World.
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Book XXII. Of Laws in Relation to the Use of Money.
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Book XXIII. Of Laws in the Relation They Bear to the Number of Inhabitants.
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Book XXIV. Of Laws in relation to Religion Considered in Itself, and in its Doctrines.
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Book XXV. Of Laws in Relation to the Establishment of Religion and its External Polity.
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Book XXVI. Of Laws in Relation to the Order of Things Which They Determine.
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Book XXVII. Of the Origin and Revolutions of the Roman Laws on Successions.
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Book XXVIII. Of the Origin and Revolutions of the Civil Laws among the French.
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Book XXIX. Of the Manner of Composing Laws.
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Book XXX. Theory of the Feudal Laws among the Franks in the Relation They Bear to the Establishment of the Monarchy.
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Book XXXI. Theory of the Feudal Laws among the Franks, in the Relation They Bear to the Revolutions of their Monarchy.
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1. Changes in the Offices and in the Fiefs.
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2. How the Civil Government was reformed.
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3. Authority of the Mayors of the Palace.
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4. Of the Genius of the Nation in regard to the Mayors.
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5. In what Manner the Mayors obtained the Command of the Armies.
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6. Second Epoch of the Humiliation of our Kings of the first Race.
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7. Of the great Offices and Fiefs under the Mayors of the Palace.
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8. In what Manner the Allodial Estates were changed into Fiefs.
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9. How the Church Lands were converted into Fiefs.
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10. Riches of the Clergy.
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11. State of Europe at the Time of Charles Martel.
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12. Establishment of the Tithes.
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13. Of the Election of Bishops and Abbots.
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14. Of the Fiefs of Charles Martel.
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15. The same Subject continued.
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16. Confusion of the Royalty and Mayoralty. The Second Race.
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17. A particular Circumstance in the Election of the Kings of the Second Race.
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18. Charlemagne.
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19. The same Subject continued.
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20. Louis the Debonnaire.
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21. The same Subject continued.
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22. The same Subject continued.
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23. The same Subject continued.
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24. That the Freemen were rendered capable of holding Fiefs.
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25. Changes in the Allodia.
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26. Changes in the Fiefs.
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27. Another change which happened in the Fiefs.
  
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Footnotes
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28. Changes which happened in the great Offices, and in the Fiefs.
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29. Of the Nature of the Fiefs after the Reign of Charles the Bald.
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30. The same Subject continued.
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31. In what Manner the Empire was transferred from the Family of Charlemain.
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32. In what Manner the Crown of France was transferred to the House of Hugh Capet.
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33. Some Consequences of the Perpetuity of Fiefs.
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34. The same Subject continued.

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30.1. 1. Of Feudal Laws.

I should think my work imperfect were I to pass over in silence an event which never again, perhaps, will happen; were I not to speak of those laws which suddenly appeared over all Europe without being connected with any of the former institutions; of those laws which have done infinite good and infinite mischief; which have suffered rights to remain when the demesne has been ceded; which by vesting several with different kinds of seignory over the same things or persons have diminished the weight of the whole seignory; which have established different limits in empires of too great extent; which have been productive of rule with a bias to anarchy, and of anarchy with a tendency to order and harmony.

This would require a particular work to itself; but considering the nature of the present undertaking, the reader will here meet rather with a general survey than with a complete treatise of those laws.

The feudal laws form a very beautiful prospect. A venerable old oak raises its lofty head to the skies, the eye sees from afar its spreading leaves; upon drawing nearer, it perceives the trunk but does not discern the root; the ground must be dug up to discover it. [1]

Footnotes

[1]

Quantum vertice ad oras Æthereas, tantum radice ad Tartara tendit -- Virgil.

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