John Locke

John Locke was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "father of liberalism". Considered one of the first of the British empiricists, following the tradition of Francis Bacon, Locke is equally important to social contract theory. His work greatly affected the development of epistemology and political philosophy. His writings influenced Voltaire and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and many Scottish Enlightenment thinkers, as well as the American Revolutionaries. His contributions to classical republicanism and liberal theory are reflected in the United States Declaration of Independence. Internationally, Locke's political-legal principles continue to have a profound influence on the theory and practice of limited representative government and the protection of basic rights and freedoms under the rule of law.

29 August 1632

Born on the same birth day (29 August): Aaron Rowand • Amanda Marshall • Charles Grandison Finney • Dick Halligan • Dinah Washington • Geneviève Jeanson • Gottfried John • Heinrich von Bellegarde • Helene Ahrweiler • Jack Lew • Jan Śniadecki • Jennifer Crittenden • Robert Rubin • Ruhila Adatia-Sood • Tony MacAlpine • Wyomia Tyus

Born in the same month (August 1632): Louis Bourdaloue