Is statehood a sine qua non for freedom? As showed, Kant regards law and the state as necessary conditions for the realization of moral autonomy. Thus, his legal doctrine goes beyond being an integral component of his critical moral philosophy. In addition, the author shows that the recognition of individual rights of freedom, legal constraints, and the prohibition of liberal resistance are mutually compatible expressions of Kantian liberalism.

Philipp-Alexander Hirsch, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen.