Ideologies / Classical Liberal / Wilhelm von Humboldt
§ The minds · 1767–1835 · Prussia · Philosopher & reformer
Wilhelm von Humboldt
The limits of state action
Self-cultivation needs the smallest possible state.
Economic+45
SocialistMarket
Governance−52
LibertarianAuthoritarian
Social+10
TraditionalProgressive
The Prussian humanist and education reformer whose essay limiting the state to security inspired Mill, and whose ideal was the free self-development of the individual.
social
Humanist of Bildung — the free flowering of each individual.
economic
Property and exchange as conditions of individual development.
governance
Argued the state should secure only safety, leaving the rest to free persons.
Notable for
- 'The Limits of State Action'
- Founded Humboldt University
- Ideal of self-cultivation (Bildung)
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