The [collection] of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands . . . may justly be [called] the very definition of tyranny. . . . . . . it will be proper to investigate the sense in which the [protection] of liberty requires that the three great departments of power should be separate and distinct.” —James Madison, The Federalist Paper No. 47 (1788) James Madison was the fourth president of the United States and one of the nation’s Founding Fathers. Which Enlightenment thinker most likely influenced the ideas presented in this quotation by Madison? Explain what this thinker believed and how his ideas relate to the quotation.
The Enlightenment thinker who most likely influenced James Madison's ideas presented in this quotation is Montesquieu. Montesquieu was a French political philosopher who is best known for his theory of the separation of powers in government.
Montesquieu believed that the best way to protect individual liberty and prevent tyranny was to divide the powers of government into three separate branches: the legislative, executive, and judiciary. This separation of powers would ensure that no single branch could become too powerful or abuse its authority.
In the quotation by James Madison, he argues that the concentration of all powers in the same hands is a definition of tyranny. He goes on to explain that the protection of liberty requires that the three branches of government be separate and distinct. This idea closely mirrors Montesquieu's theory of the separation of powers and highlights the importance of checks and balances in government to prevent the abuse of power.