The Complete Works of Montesquieu. Electronic Edition. :: Volume I. ::

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Volume I.

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book I.: of laws in general.

book II.: of laws directly derived from the nature of government.

book III.: of the principles of the three kinds of government.

book IV.: that the laws of education ought to be relative to the principles of government.

book V.: that the laws, given by the legislator, ought to be relative to the principle of government.

book VI.: consequences of the principles of different governments with respect to the simplicity of civil and criminal laws, the form of judgements, and the inflicting of punishments.

book VII.: consequences of the different principles of the three governments, with respect to sumptuary laws, luxury, and the condition of women.

book VIII.: of the corruption of the principles of the three governments.

book IX.: of laws, in the relation they bear to a defensive force.

book X.: of laws, in the relation they bear to offensive force.

book XI.: of the laws which establish political liberty, with regard to the constitution.

book XII.: of the laws that form political liberty, as relative to the subject.

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book XIII.: of the relation which the levying of taxes and the greatness of the public revenues have to liberty.

chap. I.: of the public revenues.

chap. II.: that it is bad reasoning to say that the greatness of taxes is good in its own nature.

chap. III.: of taxes in countries where part of the people are villains or bondmen.

chap. IV.: of a republic in the like case.

chap. V.: of a monarchy in the like case.

chap. VI.: of a despotic government in the like case.

chap. VII.: of taxes in countries where villainage is not established.

chap. VIII.: in what manner the deception is preserved.

chap. IX.: of a bad kind of impost.

chap. X.: that the greatness of taxes depends on the nature of the government.

chap. XI.: of confiscations.

chap. XII.: relation between the weight of taxes and liberty.

chap. XIII.: in what government taxes are capable of increase.

chap. XIV.: that the nature of the taxes is relative to the government.

chap. XV.: abuse of liberty.

chap. XVI.: of the conquests of the mahometans.

chap. XVII.: of the augmentation of troops.

chap. XVIII.: of an exemption from taxes.

chap. XIX.: which is most suitable to the prince and to the people, the farming the revenues, or managing them by commission?

chap. XX.: of the farmers of the revenues.

book XIV.: of laws as relative to the nature of the climate.

book XV.: in what manner the laws of civil slavery are relative to the nature of the climate.

book XVI.: how the laws of domestic slavery have a relation to the nature of the climate.

book XVII.: how the laws of political servitude have a relation to the nature of the climate.

book XVIII.: of laws in the relation they bear to the nature of the soil.

book XIX.: of laws, in relation to the principles which form the general spirit, the morals, and customs, of a nation.

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All Collections > The Complete Works of Montesquieu. Electronic Edition. > Volume I. > body > book xix.: of laws, in relation to the principles which form the general spirit, the morals, and customs, of a nation. > chap. XXVI.: the same subject continued.

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The Complete Works of Montesquieu. Electronic Edition.

Volume I.

Body

BOOK XIX.: OF LAWS, IN RELATION TO THE PRINCIPLES WHICH FORM THE GENERAL SPIRIT, THE MORALS, AND CUSTOMS, OF A NATION.

CHAP. XXVI.: The same Subject continued.

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CHAP. XXVI.: The same Subject continued.

THE law Leg. 8. cod. de repudiis. ^†703 of Theodosius and Valentinian drew the causes of repudiation from the ancient manners ^†704 and customs of the Romans. It placed in the number of these causes the behaviour of the husband ^†705 who beat his wife in a manner that disgraced the character of a freeborn woman. This cause was omitted in the following laws In Nov. 117. c. 14. ^†706; for their manners, in this respect, had undergone a change; the eastern customs having banished those of Europe. The first eunuch of the empress, wife to Justinian II. threatened her, says the historian, to chastise her in the same manner as children are punished at school. Nothing but established manners, or those which they were seeking to establish, could raise even an idea of this kind.

We have seen how the laws follow the manners of a people; let us now observe how the manners follow the laws.

CHAP. XXVI.: The same Subject continued.