Summary
Summary of Letters on England
Key ideas
Key idea 1
England becomes a mirror for France
After a quarrel with a nobleman leads to arrest and forced departure from Paris, Voltaire spends about two years in England. His letters turn that visit into a way of questioning life at home. He watches religious communities, government, merchants, scientists and writers, asking what the English do better and why.
Written as if to a friend, the letters mix curiosity with wit. Praise of another country becomes a quiet way to expose the limits of French institutions and customs.
Key idea 2
Goodness does not need religious pomp
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Key idea 3
Many faiths can keep the peace
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Key idea 4
Law should limit a king's power
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Key idea 5
Open exchange strengthens a country
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Key idea 6
Evidence matters more than grand theories
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Key idea 7
Writers deserve respect and honest criticism
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Key idea 8
Curiosity makes familiar rules worth questioning
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The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
Read the rest freeWho it’s for
For readers curious about the roots of liberal ideas, religious tolerance and the Enlightenment, and anyone who enjoys a sharp, witty essayist.
What this book is
Letters on England is a short book of essays by Voltaire, the French writer and wit. He spent about two years in England, from 1726 to 1728, after a quarrel with a nobleman led to his arrest in Paris and a forced departure. The letters came out in English in 1733 and in French in 1734, under the French title Philosophical Letters. They are written as if to a friend at home, and they are light, quick and often funny.
The book looks at England to hold up a mirror to France. Voltaire visits Quakers, studies Parliament, watches merchants at the Royal Exchange, attends the funeral of Isaac Newton and reads English poets and playwrights. Each time he asks the same quiet question: what do the English do better, and why? In this summary you will meet six of his main ideas, starting with the people who surprised him most, the Quakers.
In this summary
- 1Quakers show faith without pompFree
- 2Many religions keep the peace
- 3Free government limits the power of kings
- 4Trade makes a nation free and strong
- 5Trust experiment over grand systems
- 6Writers deserve honor and honest criticism
Key point 1 of 6
Quakers show faith without pomp
Voltaire opens with the Quakers, and he opens with a visit. He describes a Quaker merchant who receives him at home, wears plain clothes, uses simple speech and refuses the usual bows and titles. Voltaire is amused, but he is also won over. The Quaker explains the faith to him patiently, and Voltaire reports the answers with obvious pleasure.
The Quakers, he tells us, reject baptism with water, formal priests and holy ceremony. They believe that the spirit moves each believer directly, so any member may speak at a meeting when moved to do so. They refuse to swear oaths and to fight in wars. Voltaire notes that they are honest in business, and that this reputation brings them trade.
He also tells the story of William Penn, who founded Pennsylvania and set up a colony where people of different faiths could live together. Voltaire praises Penn's treaty with the native peoples there, and presents the colony as proof that a society can be run on fairness. He uses a gentle voice, but the point is sharp. Here is a faith with no splendour, no tithes and no persecuting clergy, and the people in it are decent.
What does this mean for a reader? Voltaire is not trying to convert anyone to Quakerism. He wants the reader in Paris to see that religion can exist without pomp and power, and that goodness does not depend on a grand church. The Quaker chapters set the tone for the whole book. They teach you to read his praise of England as a quiet criticism of France.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
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Check yourself
Why does Voltaire think religious variety helps England remain peaceful?
Right. “With many, each sect checks the others, and people get on with life.”Not quite. “With many, each sect checks the others, and people get on with life.”
What does Voltaire value about English government?
Right. “His case is that a country can be governed by law and balance rather than by one man's will.”Not quite. “His case is that a country can be governed by law and balance rather than by one man's will.”
What habit of thought does Voltaire draw from the English thinkers he admires?
Right. “Start from evidence, admit what you do not know and be wary of any grand theory that explains everything too neatly.”Not quite. “Start from evidence, admit what you do not know and be wary of any grand theory that explains everything too neatly.”
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 38,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 2 h 35 min
- Listening time4 h 15 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 13 other languages
Questions about Letters on England
What is Letters on England about?
It is a set of essays in letter form about what Voltaire saw in England, including its religions, Parliament, trade, science and literature. He uses them to praise English liberty and tolerance and to criticize France.
Why did Voltaire go to England?
After a quarrel with a French nobleman led to his arrest and then exile from Paris, Voltaire lived in England from 1726 to 1728. He learned English and met writers and thinkers there.
Why was Letters on England banned in France?
French authorities condemned it in 1734 as dangerous to religion and government. Its praise of English freedom and tolerance, and its attack on Pascal, offended the church and the crown, and a copy was publicly burned.
Is Letters on England the same as Philosophical Letters?
Yes. The English edition of 1733 was called Letters Concerning the English Nation. The French edition of 1734 was titled Lettres philosophiques and added a twenty-fifth letter on Pascal.
Is Letters on England hard to read?
No. The letters are short, witty and clear, with little technical language. The arguments are easy to follow.
