Question

Were the English and French Enlightenment thinkers[1] influenced by Renaissance humanists[2]?

[1] I mean Locke, Hume, Montesquieu, Voltaire and Hobbes.

[2] Petrarch, Montaigne, Erasmus, More, Rabelais, Giovanni Pico della Mirandola

I never heard or read a connection between the two, something I find astonishing.

Answer 1

Yes, the English and French Enlightenment thinkers were influenced by Renaissance humanists.

Step-by-step explanation:

The English and French Enlightenment thinkers were indeed influenced by Renaissance humanists. The thinkers of the Enlightenment, such as Locke, Hume, Montesquieu, Voltaire, and Hobbes, were inspired by the ideas and ideals of Renaissance humanists like Petrarch, Montaigne, Erasmus, More, Rabelais, and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola.