Lettres philosophiques or Letters Concerning the English Nation, a series of essays written by Voltaire between 1726 and 1729 based on his experiences living in England (from 1707 a constituent nation part Great Britain), had been published first in English in 1733 and in the following year in French.

Seen as an attack on the French system of government, it is rapidly suppressed.

Copies are burned, and a warrant is issued for the author's arrest.

Most modern English language versions are based on a translation of the French text rather than Voltaire's English one.

Voltaire's attitude toward English institutions is generally favorable, but it is by no means as one-sided as generally supposed: he finds plenty of things in England to satirize, including the House of Commons and the moral stringency of the Presbyterians.