Wilhelm von Humboldt

Humboldt wrote a publication entitled ‘Ideas for an endeavour to define the limits of state action’ which was completed in 1792, but was not published in full until long after his death. The section dealing with education was published in the December 1792 issue of the Berlinische Monatsschrift under the title ‘On public state education’. With this publication, Humboldt took part in the philosophical debate on the direction of national education which was in progress in Germany, as elsewhere after the French Revolution.