This essay will discuss the ideas which unite liberals and also those that divide them before moving to examine the impact liberalism has had on alternative ideologies and the general way political systems and thinking has developed in the Western world since. By looking at factors such as reason, tolerance, primacy of the individual, freedom, equality and justice, meritocracy and liberal democracy we will be able to portray the significance of Liberalism within the UK and how it remains cohesive despite its fractures between classical and modern branches. Liberalism was born in the Age of Enlightenment in the 17th Century, when politicians and economists sought to break away from the notions of the divine right of Kings and absolute monarchy. It fully emerged after the victory of the parliamentarians over the Royalists in the aftermath of the English civil war. In its place was to be a government and ruling power, based on the will of the people, which would evolve in 1867 to enable the public to vote in members of parliament; a democratic system- though this notion of liberal democracy was to have constitutional checks on government to protect individual freedoms. Liberal ideology ˜is a commitment to the individual and the desire to construct a society in which people can satisfy their interests and achieve fulfillment.' (Heywood p.23) What makes liberals liberal's however, are the key themes as already mentioned. All liberals whether Classical or Modern agree on reason; that superstition and myth are to be rejected thus allowing decisions to be made based on rational scientific principles which can be universally applied (note Thomas Hobbes' work Leviathan was published around this time and was presented as a scientific rationale of the natural state of humans). Society was also to be tolerant of one another as to celebrate social and moral diversity which is a clear example of protecting individual freedom, or as Voltaire stated "I detest what you say but I will defend to the death your right to say it  (Heywood 1998, p.35). This stance of ˜listening to others' has been employed as a pragmatic solution to issues as it allows, liberals believe, decisions to be made based on promoting ˜what is right.' However, an argument against tolerance would be the idea of having to tolerate all which would include supporting or taking into consideration paedophilia "platform" networks or hateful political parties such as BNP. Though supporting these unfavorable networks, one could argue that it is acceptable to not tolerate them and still be liberal, according to John Stuart Mill these acts deprive the victimized individuals of their liberties and in cases their lives which warrants for state intervention. Primacy of the individual, therefore, is another key theme that unites liberals whereby the individual should be of central importance to any social or political system which allows maximum freedom for the individual, though the meaning of freedom itself is something that divides the classical and liberal thinkers. Classical liberalism forms the idea of negative liberty and believes that the individuals become free from as little state intervention as possible, John Locke (1632-1704) summarized it as a night watchmen state that protected life liberty and property and no more. This notion was to