enlightenment
...5) were direct causes of the Enlightenment. The ideas of John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Montesquieu all played important roles in the revolutions. Locke’s idea of natural rights and publication of the Two Treatises of Government, Rousseau’s influence on his followers and Montesquieu’s idea of separation of power all influenced the revolutions because they objected to a government that infringed on the people's rights and freedoms and set the basis for modern democracy. John Locke believed that everyone was born with natural rights. These rights were life, liberty and property. He believes that the government was based on a social contract (a contract between the government and the citizens of between the citizens) between the citizens and the ruler, and that it was important to establish or ksdfkg slgfdlfk l;gsdfsg ;sgldkg;lsdgksd; lgkdl;skgl;dfsgk df...