Is the political science elaborated by Montesquieu built on the denial of the science of man? While discussing Montesquieu’s account of human nature in the state of nature, this article emphasizes the new focus on peoples as subjects of history. Yet The Spirit of the Laws offers two competing theories: on the one hand, his political science is focused on ‘principles’ (virtue, honour and fear), namely the dominant political passions specific to each distinctive form of government; on the other, his culturalistic approach attempts to explain the social diversity of peoples. Mankind is influenced by various causes: by climate, religion, laws, the maxims of government, precedents, morals and customs. Montesquieu is thus interpretd as a key figure in the prehistory of cultural anthropology.