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'''Cato's Letters''' (1720–23) were English political essays that shaped [[Republicanism]], demanding civic virtue and denouncing [[corruption]]. It had an enormous influence on the American [[Founding Fathers]]
'''Cato's Letters''' (1720–23) were English political essays that shaped [[Republicanism]], demanding civic virtue and denouncing [[corruption]]. It had an enormous influence on the American [[Founding Fathers]]
To conceal their identities, the authors used the [[Roman]] statesman, [[Cato the Younger]], as an alias.<ref>http://www.libertyfund.org/details.asp?displayID=1595</ref> These letters were actually written by political journalists John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon and published anonymously in a series of letters in the ''London Journal'' under the title "Cato's Letters". These 138 short essays appeared in 1720-23; with six new ones they appeared in book form in 1723.<br />
All 144 essays were published between 1720-1723; and in 1775, a two-volume modernized sixth edition of the ''Cato's Letters'' was printed in [[London]].
==Republicanism==
==Republicanism==
They expounded on republicanism. The Roman Republic was the ideal against which they judged all governance. The authors' knowledge of Roman history and literature is staggering; the text is liberally sprinkled with Latin quotations. (The Latin was translated in Hamowy's 1995 edition.)
They expounded on republicanism. The Roman Republic was the ideal against which they judged all governance. The authors' knowledge of Roman history and literature is staggering; the text is liberally sprinkled with Latin quotations. (The Latin was translated in Hamowy's 1995 edition.)
===On tyranny===
===On tyranny===
The essays condemned government tyranny and called for the advancement of [[civil liberty|civil liberties]] and [[unalienable rights]] with [[limited government|lower government intervention]]. Here are a few such quotes:
:"The state of tyranny is a state of war."
:"The state of tyranny is a state of war."
:"Tyranny is not government but a dissolution of it."
:"Tyranny is not government but a dissolution of it."
==Imfluence==
==Imfluence==
The ''Letters'' greatly influenced the American Founding Fathers.
The ''Letters'' greatly influenced the American Founding Fathers. Trenchard and Gordon's writings presented the core ideas of [[republicanism]] that were adopted by the [[American Patriots|Patriots]] in the [[American Revolution]] and form core [[American values|American political values]].
The [[Cato Institute]] is a prominent American libertarian think tank was founded in 1977 in honor of ''Cato's Letters" by Trenchard and Gordon.
The [[Cato Institute]] is a prominent American libertarian think tank was founded in 1976<ref>http://www.cato.org/pubs/papers/25th_annual_report.pdf</ref> in honor of ''Cato's Letters" by Trenchard and Gordon. It serves as a public [[libertarian]] policy research organization.<ref>http://www.libertyfund.org/details.asp?displayID=1595</ref> The Cato Institute wrote,
{{Cquote|"The [[Cato Institute]] owes its name to Cato’s Letters, a series of essays published in 18th century [[Great Britain]] that presented a vision of a society free from the [[tyranny]] of [[Police state|excessive government power]]. Those same ideals inspired the architects of the American Revolution and continue to inspire the work of the Cato Institute today."<ref>http://www.cato.org/about/reports/annual_report_2005.pdf</ref>}}
Mitchell (2004) argues that ''Cato's Letters'' fall squarely within a liberal republican tradition, embracing [[John Locke]], [[Bernard Mandeville]], and (later) [[David Hume]], and [[Adam Smith]] and suggests that it was in this vein that they were read by the Founding Fathers.
Mitchell (2004) argues that ''Cato's Letters'' fall squarely within a liberal republican tradition, embracing [[John Locke]], [[Bernard Mandeville]], and (later) [[David Hume]], and [[Adam Smith]] and suggests that it was in this vein that they were read by the Founding Fathers.