How an 18th-century French abbot still sways the EU
Saint-Pierre described a union of nations in clunky prose to make Brussels proud
THE “Project for Bringing About Perpetual Peace in Europe” did not receive rave reviews when published in 1713. Voltaire thought the author, the Abbot of Saint-Pierre, was deluded. “The peace…will no more be realised than among elephants, rhinoceroses, wolves, or dogs,” he wrote. Showing less understanding of nature than of politics, he added: “Carnivorous animals will always tear one another to pieces at the first opportunity.”
This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “The EU: 1713 edition”
From the August 21st 2021 edition
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