Early Modern History Workshop, Alex Bevilacqua 2/16/10
Alexander Bevilacqua, Princeton University
" Anacharsis Cloots and the Republic of Mankind"
Location: 210 Dickinson Hall
Date/Time: 2010-02-16 at 12:00 pm - 2010-02-16 at 1:15 pm
For the pre-circulated paper,please contact Freddy Dominguez,fdomingu@Princeton.EDU ******** Abstract: During the French Revolution, Jean-Baptiste "Anacharsis"ÂCloots (1755-1794) developed a theory of the world state as the means to guarantee perpetual peace for mankind. Though his ideas have been often misunderstood, Cloots's political writings were in fact an extensive plea for more global understanding of the importance of the Revolution. His political vision adapted institutions and concepts of the French revolutionary republic for a world state. This paper recovers his political vision and connects it both to the heritage of 18th-c. political thought, especially Rousseau, and to revolutionary politics. The goal is to make sense of Cloots's universal republic, a neglected but significant chapter in the history of universalist rights doctrines and democratic imperialism.
Category: WorkshopHistory Department