History of liberalism

Liberalism was seen as a reaction to assumptions and tradition, such as the Divine Right of kings which were the basis of most earlier theories of government. However, the first person to establish Liberalism's emphasis on an individual was actually one who supported authoritarian regimes: Thomas Hobbes. As an Englishman living throughout the English Civil War, Hobbes witnessed the terror and carnage of anarchy as authority throughout war-torn England broke down, which resulted in terrible atrocities and crimes against ordinary civilians. Such events would lead him to quote, that with no central authority and no monopoly of the use of force,

"The condition of Man...is a condition of Warre of every one against every one." (Leviathan Pt I Ch 14)

Locke on limited government
It fell then to another Englishman to found the a great step in Liberal political Philosophy, against the background of Religious intolerance and political oppression. John Locke would found the next few steps from Divine Right to the Rights of Man. The break between Hobbes and his Liberal grandchildren would come about by the experience of Europe under the tumult of the Religious Wars between Roman Catholic and Protestant. .... As such, Locke's theories should be read not merely as the thoughts of a Liberal philosopher seeking to protect individual effort and right to decision, but also as a personal defence for one's religious beliefs against religious discrimination by the State.

18th Century Revolutions
In the 18th Century the French Revolution and the American Revolution both helped develop liberal democratic ideals.

George Mason and the Virginia Declaration of Rights
In May of 1776, George Mason, another Englishman living in the Colony of Virginia, wrote the original draft of the a Declaration of Rights for the Colony of Virginia. Mason's original draft was widely circulated within the English Colonies of America and it's articulation of Natural Rights of all Men as a basis for government had a profound effect. On June 12, 1776, the Virginia Assembly unanimously adopted an amended version as "the basis and foundation of government". George Mason was also the principal author of the Virginia Constitution later that summer. Many other Colonies later adopted Bills of rights and incorporated them into their own Constitutions. Some of the northern Colonies chose to adopt bills of rights much closer to Mason's original draft, and these Bills of Rights became the legal basis for the emancipation of Slaves in some States.

Modernity and beyond
Social progressivism teaches that we shouldn’t imagine something’s good just because our parents and grandparents always did things that way. If an old way of doing things doesn’t work or doesn’t work anymore we should change it, humanity will do better if we change bad traditions. Liberal ideology usually includes social progressivism. Freedom and equality do not always go together if there is too much freedom some strong people will abuse freedom to oppress weaker people. Therefore some liberal philosophies think freedom is more important, see Libertarianism while other liberal philosophies like social democracy think equality matters more. Classical liberalism is all for free private enterprise, letting people control their own property even if they harm others, that’s called free property rights, laissez-faire economic policy, and freedom of contract. Classical liberalism doesn’t always like the welfare state. Classical liberals support equality before the law and classical liberals say that when Capitalism causes economic inequality i.e. makes some people rich while others are poor the state shouldn’t force rich people to share their wealth. New liberals advocate a greater degree of government influence to protect individual rights (in a broad sense), often in the form of anti-discrimination laws. New liberals support universal education, and many also support welfare, including benefits for the unemployed, housing for the homeless, and medical care for the sick, all supported by progressive taxation.