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Online Library of Liberty The OLL is a curated collection of scholarly works that engage with vital questions of liberty.

Spanning the centuries from Hammurabi to Hume, and collecting material on topics from art and economics to law and political theory, the OLL provides you with a rich variety of texts to explore and consider.

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The Reading Room

The OLL blog explores the fascinating, vital, and often surprising texts and people that fill our library. Come talk in our library!

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Liberty Matters

The OLL brings people together to debate and discuss important texts and big ideas about liberty.

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Liberty Matters: A Forum for the Discussion of Ideas About Liberty Is Machiavelli Friend or Foe to Liberty? (May 2022)

Niccolo Machiavelli remains one of the most contested figures in the history of liberalism. Was he an advocate of republican government, or an adviser to tyrants? Did he preach a politics of fear or a politics of civility? We asked several scholars where they thought Machiavelli's place in this history ought to be. Over the course of this month, you'll hear from a variety of disciplines and per...

Explore the OLL Collection: Quotations About Liberty and Power Thomas Gordon on the nature of power to expand (1721)

The Commonwealthman Thomas Gordon (1692-1750) has some acute observations about human nature. He thinks most people are too credulous or accepting of political power, and that power has a tendency to expand at the expence of liberty:

Explore the OLL Collection: Images of Liberty and Power Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

Déclaration des Droits de l'Homme et du Citoyen de 1789 [Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (August 1789] by Jean-Jacques François Le Barbier (1738-1826) Related Links: Georg Jellinek, The Declaration of the Rights of Man Key Political Documents Subject Area: the French Revolution Debate about the French Revolution To celebrate Bastille Day we hav...