He eliminated final causes altogether, and Providence plays no part on his historical stage.

Here his work reinforced the teaching of Montesquieu.

Otherwise Montesquieu and Voltaire entirely differed in their methods.

Voltaire concerned himself only with the causal enchainment of events and the immediate motives of men.

His interpretation of history was confined to the discovery of particular causes; he did not consider the operation of those larger general causes which Montesquieu investigated.