Letters on England

By Voltaire

One of France's greatest writers, Voltaire was frequently persecuted for his ideas and as a result, spent time in the famed Bastille. He fled his native land for England in 1726, at which time he witnessed the differences between the two countries. His celebrated Letters on England was first published in that nation in 1733 and contained 24 succinct letters on subjects ranging from religion and politics, to trade, the arts, philosophy, and science.

00 Letters 1 to 4: On the Quakers

01 Letter 5: On the Church of England

02 Letter 6: On the Presbyterians

03 Letter 7: On the Socinians, or Arians, or AntiTrinitarians

04 Letter 8: On the Parliament

05 Letter 9: On the Government

06 Letter 10: On Trade

07 Letter 11: On Inoculation

08 Letter 12: On the Lord Bacon

09 Letter 13: On Mr. Locke

10 Letter 14: On Descartes and Sir Isaac Newton

11 Letter 15: On Attraction

12 Letter 16: On Sir Isaac Newton's Optics

13 Letter 17: On Infinites in Geometry, and Sir Isaac Newton's Chronology

14 Letter 18: On Tragedy

15 Letter 19: On Comedy

16 Letter 20: On Such of the Nobility as Cultivate the Belles Lettres

17 Letter 21: On the Earl of Rochester and Mr. Waller

18 Letter 22: On Mr. Pope and Some Other Famous Poets

19 Letter 23: On the Regard That Ought to be Shown to Men of Letters

20 Letter 24: On the Royal Society and Other Academies