... The document so frantically cobbled together was stunning in its sweep and simplicity. Never once mentioning king, nobility, or church, it declared the "natural, inalienable and sacred rights of man" to be the foundation of any and all government. It assigned sovereignty to the nation,
not the king, and pronounced everyone equal before the law, thus opening positions to talent and merit and implicitly eliminating all privilege
based on birth. More striking than any particular guarantee, however, was the universality of the claims made. References to "men," "man,"
"every man," "all men," "all citizens," "each citizen," "society," and "every society" dwarfed the single reference to the French people
-Lynn Hunt, Inventing Human Rights: A History, W. W. Norton & Company
This passage discusses ideals most directly associated with the
1
2
Golden Age of Islam
Reign of Charlemagne
Reformation
3
4
Enlightenment