Benjamin Constant is a Swiss-French political activist and writer. All his life he promoted the ideas of the liberal structure of the state. His thoughts had a significant impact on the Portuguese Revolution, the Greek War of Independence, and uprisings in Poland, Brazil and Mexico. During his career, Constant has published a number of important political treatises, as well as the great autobiographical novel Adolf.
Early biography
Benjamin Constant was born in the small town of Lausanne in a family of Protestants who fled to Switzerland during the Huguenot Wars in the 16th century. His father Jules Constant de Rebecca served as a high-ranking officer in the army of the Netherlands, and Benjamin's mother died shortly after his birth. Grandmother from both parents took care of the boy. They hired the most famous educators of that time for their young grandson, taught the natural sciences and the humanities, and tried to introduce them to art.
Until the end of the 1780s, Constant was educated at home, and then entered the Erlangen Protestant University. Immediately after graduation, Benjamin was offered a position in a local court, and for several years he was involved in drafting protocols and protecting the innocent.
Career success
During the French Revolution, Constant was a defender of the bicameral movement and the British Parliament. Thanks to Benjamin’s influence, leading politicians of the time recognized the need for a constitution. After the official publication of the country's main law, Napoleon Bonaparte personally met with Constant and invited him to become a member of the Tribunal. This extraordinary body was created for the trial of political criminals. Subsequently, the department became a kind of engine of the so-called "Age of Terror."
However, in 1802, Benjamin was forced to leave his place of work because of his speeches against his superiors. Since that time, the activist has ceased to cooperate with Napoleon and people close to him. Constant was so angry with the emperor that he took part in a conspiracy against him. However, the attempted murder was unsuccessful. After that, Benjamin packed his things and quickly moved with his family to German Weimar.
However, despite the fact that Constant reluctantly left France, in Germany he acquired many loyal comrades. Benjamin was friends with the most famous people of his era, among whom were Johann Wolfgang Goethe, Friedrich von Schiller and August Schlegel. A few years later he decided to move to Rouen. There, Constant settled in a small apartment with a minimal set of furniture and began to write an autobiographical novel, Adolf. The book was first published in 1816 in London. The writer himself quickly gained worldwide popularity, and even Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin praised his literary talent. In his work, the author described his relationship with his wives, and also shared with readers how the modern political system works from the inside.
Worldview
Throughout his life, Benjamin tried to convince officials, politicians and government officials that personal freedom is the most powerful engine of world progress. He created a series of theoretical works on the relationship of individuals with power. In his opinion, each person is a bearer of ideas that form all social institutions. That is why Constant advocated that the state guarantee the individual freedom and independence. The activist often said that only a person with freedom is able to be happy and lead his country forward.
In addition, Benjamin strongly advocated modern approaches to politics. Convinced that inequality between people is a sign of a degrading society, he forced politicians to gradually weaken their influence on society.
In his work Principles of Politics, which was first published in 1815, Constant spoke out that a constitutional monarchy based on the English model could become an ideal model of government for France. Power, according to his views, in such a society should be divided among all its participants. In fact, he presented the French politicians with new methods of government, which they, in turn, applied in practice.
