The Ruins or Medition on the Revolutions of Empires and the Law of Nature

Meditations on man and history, first published in 1791. According to Wikipedia: "Constantin François de Chassebœuf, comte de Volney (3 February 1757 – 25 April 1820) was a French philosopher, historian, orientalist, and politician. He was at first surnamed Boisgirais after his father's estate, but afterwards assumed the name of Volney (which he had created as a contraction of Voltaire and Ferney).”