Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
liberalism
References & Edit History Related Topics
Images & Videos
John Locke English philosopher Thomas Hobbes
Understanding John Locke's A Letter Concerning Toleration
U.S. Pres. John Adams Asher B. Durand: portrait of James Madison James Tassie: Adam Smith John Stuart Mill William Ewart Gladstone
What is the philosophy of liberalism?
Franklin D. Roosevelt
For Students
John Locke
liberalism summary
Related Questions
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Britannica Websites
Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.
John Locke
John Locke The philosopher John Locke, oil on canvas by Herman Verelst, 1689; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.

liberalism

politics
Written by
Richard Dagger
Professor of Political Science, Arizona State University, Tempe. Author of Civic Virtues: Rights, Citizenship, and Republican Liberalism and others.
Richard DaggerAll
Fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
Last updated
•History

liberalism, political doctrine that takes protecting and enhancing the freedom of the individual to be the central problem of politics. Liberals typically believe that government is necessary to protect individuals from being harmed by others, but they also recognize that government itself can pose a threat to liberty. As the American Revolutionary pamphleteer Thomas Paine expressed it in Common Sense (1776), government is at best “a necessary evil.” Laws, judges, and police are needed to...

Discover the world with Britannica

Subscribe to Continue Reading

Free Trial | No Ads | Exclusive Content

Unsubscribe Anytime!

Explore Subscriptions
DNA
Right
Mobile