B2218

__Voltaire 1694-1778__ Francois Marie Arouet, who went by the name Voltaire, developed many ideas about the shift in social structures, and was said to have used his genius for the benefit of humanity. When he was exiled from Paris for criticizing the form of government, he moved to England and began to favor the country. He was a reformer, not a revolutionary, and stressed the idea that the best form of government was a good monarch since people could rarely govern themselves. His philosophical and religious ideas were much more radical however. His writings challenged the Catholic Church and Christian theology at every point. All of his ideas led to the development of other ideas of government. Other philosophers came up with their own ideas and some developed the ideas that the people were able to govern themselves. This idea caught on and all because Voltaire began to research and develop ideas about the different forms of government.