Full Idea
Any society in which the guarantee of Rights is not assured, nor the separation of Power determined, has no Constitution.
Gist of Idea
There is only a constitution if rights are assured, and separation of powers defined
Source
Mirabeau and committee (Declaration of the Rights of Man [1789], 16)
Book Reference
'Les Philosophes', ed/tr. Torrey,Norman L. [Perigee 1980], p.286
A Reaction
I wonder if they had Britain in mind with this one? The British latched onto Magna Carta in the early 19th century, because it offered some semblance of a constitution.