Which Enlightenment thinker wrote Letters on the English after living in England? Voltaire wrote Letters on the English, drawing on his experience in Great Britain from 1726 to 1729. The work is also known as Letters Concerning the English Nation and, in French, Lettres philosophiques.
Voltaire used observations of British religion, politics, science, literature, and institutions to reflect critically on France. His letters discussed figures such as John Locke, Isaac Newton, William Shakespeare, Jonathan Swift, and Alexander Pope. Several passages praised aspects of British intellectual and political life, including the status given to writers and the influence of Newtonian science.
The book first appeared in English in 1733 and was published in French in 1734. The French edition was treated as an attack on the French system of government and was rapidly suppressed. Voltaire's willingness to compare French customs with British practices made the book an important vehicle for Enlightenment criticism.
A common confusion is to attribute the work to Locke or Newton because they are prominent subjects in its essays. They were discussed by Voltaire; they did not write the book. Rousseau and Diderot were also major Enlightenment figures, but Letters on the English belongs to Voltaire.