Numerous authors have speculated that [libertarian
socialist](Libertarian_Socialism "wikilink") and anarchist thinking has
a number of forerunners throughout history - or people and movements who
expressed similar ideas long before
[Bakunin](Mikhail_Bakunin "wikilink") was born.

## Examples of Forerunners

### Among Movements

#### Agriculturalism

Agriculturalism (sometimes called the School of the Tillers) was a
philosophy that emerged in ancient China (around 770BCE to 221BCE) which
argued that agriculture was the key to a stable and prosperous society.
They also advocated for ideas that can be seen as forerunnners of
libertarian socialism, such as having a "king" who worked alongside
peasants in the fields and consulted with others before reaching a
decision. They also believed in the abolition of economic inequality and
communal ownership of land.\[1\]

[David Graeber](David_Graeber "wikilink") summaried the movement as
believing that: "both merchants and government officials were both
useless parasites, and attempted to create communities of equals where
the only leadership would be by example, and the economy would be
democratically regulated in unclaimed territories between the major
states. Apparently, the movement was created by an alliance between
renegade intellectuals who fled to such free villages and the peasant
intellectuals they encountered there. Their ultimate aim appears to have
been to gradually draw off defectors from surrounding kingdoms and thus,
eventually, cause their collapse."\[2\]

#### Maroons

The maroons refers to a variety of communities formed in the Americas of
alliances between free slaves and indigenous people. Maroons formed a
variety of self-governing communities and defended themselves from
colonialists.\[3\]

#### Quakers

The Quakers are a [Christian](Christianity "wikilink") denomination that
emerged out of Protestantism in the 1600s who have often been identified
as being similar to libertarian socialism. They are famous for being
consistently one of the most liberal and forward thinking sects of
Christianity. Quakers tend to believe that all people are capable of
finding god, and avoid building hierarchical structures. They have
historically advocated against war, for the [abolition of
slavery](Abolition_of_Slavery "wikilink"), against drinking alcohol and
for wearing plain clothes. Quakers are most famous historically in
England and North America, but are located all over the world.\[4\]

### Among Individuals

#### Socrates

Some have argued that Socrates' insistence on critical thinking and
arguing with power structures makes him something of a proto-anarchist,
although Socrates never explicitly advocated for the end of the
state.\[5\]

<references />

1.  <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriculturalism>
2.  David Graeber, *The Democracy Project: A History, A Crisis, A
    Movement* (New York: Spiegel & Grau, 2013), 188-189
3.  <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maroons>
4.  <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quakers>
5.  Peter Marshall (1993) - Demanding the Impossible: A History of
    Anarchism