The Education of the Human Race was written by German writer, philosopher, dramatist, publicist and art critic Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, and was originally published in German in 1780, and English in 1858, as translated by Frederick William Robertson (Robertson of Brighton) an Anglican divine. The work closely represents the development of Lessing's mind, and shows his belief in the perfectibility of the human race, and deistic tendencies. Lessing saw, throughout the development of the world's religions, a developing moral comprehension and awareness, that would eventually develop into the zenith of universal brotherhood and moral freedom that would transcend all dogmas and doctrines.