Rights of Man is a Technology in Empire: Total War.
Description[]
A theory promoting the rights of the individual, and introducing the view that "Men are born free and remain free and equal in rights.
Every man deserve rights, regardless of his nationality, class and any other categorization placed upon him by his fellow man. These rights should extend to anything that does no injury to others. Any law imposed should only have the power to prevent things, and nothing else. These are the new ideas implicit in the Rights of Man. Theorists believe law is an expression of the general will and as such should not be controlled by a single individual.
Historically, Thomas Paine (1737-1809), an English revolutionary who was involved in both the American and French Revolutions, wrote the "Rights of Man". His work supported and advanced the ideals behind both revolutions: he had a strong belief in the need for freedom of speech. He stated that a man should never be punished for his views and should be free to voice them to the masses. In a time when some of his fellows were prosecuted for publishing radical theories this was a dangerous view point indeed. Paine is still regarded as a hero to this day.