With Plato (427-347 B.C.), Western political philosophy can be said to have truly begun. His work ‘Politeia’ (the Republic) is still studied at all (Western) universities. But his metafysics and ethics as well still provide an object of deep thinking. Plato, the champion of true aristocracy and just hierachy, symbolizes the birth of mature Greek philosophy and with that, of Western thinking itself.

Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (1809-1865) is widely regarded as the father of anarchism, and further influenced notalble anarchist thinkers such as Michael Bakunin and Peter Kropotkin. Critical towards both the modern state and the modern, capitalist economy, Proudhon was a relentless critic who serves today as an inspiration for resistance and rebellion in its most radical form.

Edmund Burke (1729-1797) is widely regarded as the father of modern conservatism. In a world of feasibility thinking, glorification of reason, worship of egalitarianism and the disappearance of traditions, Edmund Burke can serve as a guiding light in search of the things that serve as the foundation of a healthy society. Things that are commonly forgotten in our modern, Western world.

Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Friedrich Engels (1820-1895) might be regarded by many as the pioneers of much of the totalitarianism that we saw during the 20th century. Nevertheless, their relentless critique of the capitalist world, their enduring influence on thinkers from both the left and the right and their succes in creating an enduring, world-wide movement, make them remain central reading.

As an early Romantic thinker, Johann Gottfried von Herder (1744-1803) is generally regarded as one of the founders of German Romanticism as well as cultural nationalism. His oeuvre is characterized by cultural particularism and ethnic consiousness, but always cosmopolitically openminded towards the Other. A much needed attitude in these confusing times.

The man who ‘philosophized with a hammer’, Friedrich Nietsche (1844-1900) is one of the most controversial philosophers to date, but also one of the most necessary and interesting to study. His attack on slave morality and his critique of ‘the last man’ truly sets him apart as a gifted visionary. His relevance and insightfullness has not waned over the more than a century that separates us from this remarkable thinker.

Oswald Spengler (1880-1936), the thinker of pessimism and one of the most interesting and controversial historians in world history. His determinism on the inevitable decline of cultures may be difficult for some, the way in which depth, originality and perspicacity marked his works makes him a prophet for our troubled times.

René Guénon (1886-1951) was a French-Egyptian esoteric who was the founder of Traditionalism, influencing countless others who followed in his wake. His life and thinking encapsulates both traditions of the East and West, making him an essential guide in looking at religion on a global scale.

Alain de Benoist (born in 1943) is a French (political) philosopher. With his part in the foundation of GRECE, a French think tank created in 1969, he was one of the founding fathers of the French ‘Nouvelle Droite’ or ‘New Right’. There are no subjects left unexplored in the oeuvre of this intellectual jack-of-all-trades, and his knowledge and erudition are well admitted by both friend and enemy.