Classical Liberalism Defined

This definition of classical liberalism is from 1873 by England’s Sir William Harcourt, who made the point in a talk at Oxford. Liberty, said Harcourt, “…does not consist in making others do what you think is right. The difference between a free Government and a Government which is not free is principally this — that a Government which is not free interferes with everything it can, and a free Government interferes with nothing except what it must. A despotic government tries to make everybody do what it wishes, a Liberal Government tries, so far as the safety of society will permit, to allow everybody to do what he wishes.“