With this satirical fairy tale novella about the unyielding nature of humanity, Voltaire launched a frontal attack in 1759 on Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz and his optimistic philosophy of the best of all possible worlds: Candide, the illegitimate offspring of a Westphalian baron, is banished from his ancestral castle after a romantic adventure. He then wanders through Europe and overseas, moving from one catastrophe to another, accompanied by his teacher Pangloss, a follower of Leibniz's doctrine, which is continually undermined by the ongoing misfortunes. Finally finding peace on a country estate, the novel ends with Candide's prosaic call: "We must cultivate our garden.".