More than just a philosopher, Voltaire (1694-1778) helped to popularize English writers and science in general to his French readers. When Voltaire was sent into exile in 1727, he exploited his enforced absence from France as an opportunity to visit England. During his stay, he studied the language, read widely, sought out the personal acquaintance of a host of English luminaries in letters and the sciences, and studied English institutions as a sympathetic outsider. He then published a series of short essays, first in English, under the title Letters concerning the English Nation (1733), and then in French under the title Lettres philosophiques [or Philosophical Letters] (in 1734). The reaction in France was highly mixed. In fact, the work was both wildly hailed and formally banned.