How can one century be typified as dissolute and period of great thinkers?
Answer I think that the fact that it was a dissolute age directly led to the Enlightenment(although of course the origins of the Enlightenment ultimately lay in the 17th century with scientists like Isaac Newton).Granted, there were many excesses by various European monarchs, but all these monarchs managed to greatly curb the power of the Church which had been the prime reason for the catastrophic religious wars in the 17th century.This, along with the centralisation enforced by the absolutist monarchs in turn allowed the science and philosophy to flourish. As regards the coffee-houses and tea-gardens, these were highly useful in that they allowed people from all walks of life to meet and chat with each other without any social barriers between them, which of course was impossible otherwise.Indeed, Lloyds’ the shipping insurance company and Twinings both originated as such places.
