“Letters on England”, by Voltaire, translated and introduced by Leonard Tancock

162 pages, Penguin Classics, ISBN-13: 978-0140443868

Voltaire, the nom de plume of François-Marie Arouet, was a French Enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher famous for his wit, his attacks on the established Catholic Church and his advocacy of freedom of religion, freedom of speech and the separation of church and state. This, as one can well imagine, did not make him popular with many – most? – in the upper echelons of French society, and he found himself, more often than not, on the run from the authorities or in exile. This was how he found himself in exile in England between the years 1726 to 1729 where he wrote a series of twenty-five essays, the Letters on England, in which he made several striking observations about the same, holding up a mirror to France by praising English liberty, democracy and tolerance (his fellow French subjects couldn’t read these works, however, as they were banned in his home country...c’est la vie). From these works it is obvious that Voltaire was enamored of England’s religious tolerance vis-à-vis France, describing how the Quakers, Anglicans, Presbyterians and others all coexist and described just how religious freedom worked. Many of Voltaire’s views are what we would describe today as Libertarian; he was a great admirer of English trade, commerce and businessmen, has nice things to say about John Locke, Isaac Newton and other figures from English literature and their styles, and even devotes a letter to smallpox inoculation. Letters on England is a fascinating look at key aspects of English culture and life, and American readers will recognize some of the characteristics of England that later found even greater expression in this country. As it is true that in the area of liberty England is an outlier compared with the rest of Europe, America is an outlier compared to England.