Liberalism

Liberalism is a <a href="/facts/Political_philosophy/JuLBNdAX">political</a> and <a href="/facts/Moral_philosophy/wNVNgL5q">moral philosophy</a> based on the <a href="/facts/Individual_rights/61eTJH1B">rights of the individual</a>, <a href="/facts/Liberty/fHvkBVSv">liberty</a>, <a href="/facts/Consent_of_the_governed/JArycX9u">consent of the governed</a>, <a href="/facts/Political_equality/S621Lnge">political equality</a>, the <a href="/facts/Right_to_property/sF4Wc7g7">right to private property</a>, and <a href="/facts/Equality_before_the_law/cEe7W4rc">equality before the law</a>. Liberals espouse various and often mutually conflicting views depending on their understanding of these principles but generally support <a href="/facts/Private_property/w4nypYHj">private property</a>, <a href="/facts/Market_economy/d56S7haK">market economies</a>, individual rights (including <a href="/facts/Civil_rights/DBK7m6s2">civil rights</a> and <a href="/facts/Human_rights/WMW5XCdM">human rights</a>), <a href="/facts/Liberal_democracy/5blgnbkS">liberal democracy</a>, <a href="/facts/Secularism/QEGcV0XI">secularism</a>, <a href="/facts/Rule_of_law/BS8rbmel">rule of law</a>, <a href="/facts/Economic_freedom/daNgFbuQ">economic</a> and <a href="/facts/Political_freedom/QElv3Bmc">political freedom</a>, <a href="/facts/Freedom_of_speech/jYakwGMP">freedom of speech</a>, <a href="/facts/Freedom_of_the_press/9RLTKfod">freedom of the press</a>, <a href="/facts/Freedom_of_assembly/zDxVFral">freedom of assembly</a>, and <a href="/facts/Freedom_of_religion/ERtoqLEE">freedom of religion</a>. Liberalism is frequently cited as the dominant <a href="/facts/Ideology/BWooMbq7">ideology</a> of <a href="/facts/Modern_history/uB3yXt4H">modern history</a>.: 11 
Liberalism became a distinct <a href="/facts/Political_movement/UQyJz4eY">movement</a> in the <a href="/facts/Age_of_Enlightenment/Uj2Fa8Mk">Age of Enlightenment</a>, gaining popularity among <a href="/facts/Western_world/UQl4e7du">Western</a> philosophers and <a href="/facts/Economist/41nWfEgr">economists</a>. Liberalism sought to replace the <a href="/facts/Norm_(social)/Qu2jGBz3">norms</a> of <a href="/facts/Nobility/WLPIA8GT">hereditary privilege</a>, <a href="/facts/State_religion/K7E28FLL">state religion</a>, <a href="/facts/Absolute_monarchy/bw15yYtX">absolute monarchy</a>, the <a href="/facts/Divine_right_of_kings/x3jCGoeJ">divine right of kings</a> and <a href="/facts/Traditionalist_conservatism/JwTRxNzr">traditional conservatism</a> with <a href="/facts/Representative_democracy/svAbpym5">representative democracy</a>, rule of law, and equality under the law. Liberals also ended <a href="/facts/Mercantilist/96U7yI74">mercantilist</a> policies, <a href="/facts/Legal_monopoly/51UXjMpX">royal monopolies</a>, and other <a href="/facts/Trade_barrier/WwfmvW9K">trade barriers</a>, instead promoting <a href="/facts/Free_trade/Mg9NLrdw">free trade</a> and marketization. The philosopher <a href="/facts/John_Locke/NlpkCxcX">John Locke</a> is often credited with founding liberalism as a distinct tradition based on the <a href="/facts/Social_contract/vFPeB2J2">social contract</a>, arguing that each man has a <a href="/facts/Natural_and_legal_rights/9TgjWASG">natural right</a> to <a href="/facts/Life%2c_liberty_and_property/WYUTdDY8">life, liberty and property</a>, and governments must not violate these <a href="/facts/Rights/K72eoKB6">rights</a>. While the <a href="/facts/Gladstonian_liberalism/Drc20Qwz">British liberal tradition</a> emphasized expanding democracy, <a href="/facts/Liberalism_and_radicalism_in_France/lRDthEKH">French liberalism</a> emphasized rejecting <a href="/facts/Authoritarianism/88Kfm2gU">authoritarianism</a> and is linked to <a href="/facts/Nationalism/IECpIhm0">nation-building</a>.
Leaders in the British <a href="/facts/Glorious_Revolution/R2r13My4">Glorious Revolution</a> of 1688, the <a href="/facts/American_Revolution/zy1F0LxK">American Revolution</a> of 1776, and the <a href="/facts/French_Revolution/PIkDlrC0">French Revolution</a> of 1789 used liberal philosophy to justify the armed overthrow of royal <a href="/facts/Sovereignty/QnYhTTem">sovereignty</a>. The 19th century saw liberal governments established in <a href="/facts/Liberalism_in_Europe/LaNNSShD">Europe</a> and <a href="/facts/Liberalism_and_conservatism_in_Latin_America/3ebYj7PJ">South America</a>, and it was well-established alongside <a href="/facts/Republicanism_in_the_United_States/p6PKbIbW">republicanism in the United States</a>. In <a href="/facts/Victorian_Britain/HQxGp7wh">Victorian Britain</a>, it was used to critique the political establishment, appealing to science and reason on behalf of the people. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, <a href="/facts/Liberalism_in_Turkey/9uqgcqNp">liberalism in the Ottoman Empire</a> and the <a href="/facts/Middle_East/8CD6pLWv">Middle East</a> influenced periods of reform, such as the <a href="/facts/Tanzimat/I83H2yXu">Tanzimat</a> and <a href="/facts/Al-Nahda/MpzIwU7E">Al-Nahda</a>, and the rise of <a href="/facts/Constitutionalism/PKDbRQEz">constitutionalism</a>, <a href="/facts/Nationalism/IECpIhm0">nationalism</a>, and <a href="/facts/Secularism/QEGcV0XI">secularism</a>. These changes, along with other factors, helped to create a sense of crisis within <a href="/facts/Islam/zDLbL45C">Islam</a>, which continues to this day, leading to <a href="/facts/Islamic_revivalism/JJyDq25R">Islamic revivalism</a>. Before 1920, the main ideological opponents of liberalism were <a href="/facts/Communism/PkUwa9xK">communism</a>, <a href="/facts/Conservatism/2XdCcPzq">conservatism</a>, and <a href="/facts/Socialism/U2kVoPaA">socialism</a>; liberalism then faced major ideological challenges from <a href="/facts/Fascism/EhQWcPsE">fascism</a> and <a href="/facts/Marxism%25E2%2580%2593Leninism/bXD3yf3m">Marxism–Leninism</a> as new opponents. During the 20th century, liberal ideas spread even further, especially in Western Europe, as liberal democracies found themselves as the winners in both <a href="/facts/World_wars/pEzjDFFs">world wars</a> and the <a href="/facts/Cold_War/spJdJQ3q">Cold War</a>.
Liberals sought and established a constitutional order that prized important <a href="/facts/Civil_liberties/xyu96brC">individual freedoms</a>, such as <a href="/facts/Freedom_of_speech/jYakwGMP">freedom of speech</a> and <a href="/facts/Freedom_of_association/YoGAN8cB">freedom of association</a>; an <a href="/facts/Independent_judiciary/5apjulba">independent judiciary</a> and public <a href="/facts/Trial_by_jury/XEsU5Emr">trial by jury</a>; and the abolition of <a href="/facts/Aristocracy_(class)/Ij9GVxCE">aristocratic</a> privileges. Later waves of modern liberal thought and struggle were strongly influenced by the need to expand civil rights. Liberals have advocated gender and racial equality in their drive to promote civil rights, and global <a href="/facts/Civil_rights_movements/TYBmWyqd">civil rights movements</a> in the 20th century achieved several objectives towards both goals. Other goals often accepted by liberals include <a href="/facts/Universal_suffrage/QXTRB4Lh">universal suffrage</a> and <a href="/facts/Universal_access_to_education/f8RALxkc">universal access to education</a>. In Europe and North America, the establishment of <a href="/facts/Social_liberalism/TMBttxF6">social liberalism</a> (often called simply <a href="/facts/Modern_liberalism_in_the_United_States/HGn9XCda">liberalism</a> in the United States) became a key component in expanding the <a href="/facts/Welfare_state/JR15sKL1">welfare state</a>. 21st-century <a href="/facts/Liberal_parties_by_country/Gm4GLslo">liberal parties</a> continue to wield power and influence throughout the world. The fundamental elements of <a href="/facts/Modernity/kkpjFrpr">contemporary society</a> have liberal roots. The early waves of liberalism popularised economic individualism while expanding constitutional government and <a href="/facts/Parliament/n2zfmmBC">parliamentary</a> authority.

Liberalism open-in-new

Liberalism