The subject of this work is the matter of education and freedom in the thought of JeanJacques Rousseau, one of the most significant representatives of the French Enlightenment. Rousseau builds his philosophy on the critique of contemporary society, whom he opposes the natural state of the noble savage. By the transition of man into a civil state, love of self (amour de soi) is distorted under the influence of reason into self-love (amour proper). As an ideal Rousseau presents a social order that will re-establish freedom and equality among the citizens of a political community. The central theme of the ordered social contract is the general will. It is expressed in the law under which citizens are free. Under the social contract man gave up his natural freedom (independence and right to everything), and the gain of this new condition is social, political and moral freedom. Moral freedom is equivalent to autonomy, self-legislation. In order to establish a new civil state, to transform human nature, he reaches for Emile, an individual who is raised in isolation, far away from the destructive impact of society. Rousseau in his philosophy of education, on the one hand, considers the education of the natural man in a corrupt society, and on the other the education of natural man in an ideal state. In this paper, we will first consider Rousseau's concept of freedom starting from the presentation of his fundamental works in the field of political philosophy: Social Contract and Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality among Men. Also, reference will be made to the relationship of equality and freedom and the distinction between freedom in a natural state and in a civil state. In the second part of the paper, Rousseau's theory of education will be analysed. There we will first analyse his work Emile, or On Education with particular emphasis on Rousseau’s contribution to child psychology, stages of education, the role of the mentor and negative education. Then we will point out the difference between public and private education and the relation between the Social Contract and Emile. The fourth chapter highlights the relationship between education and freedom and the role of the latter in education. And, finally, the conclusion summarizes all the important ideas that arise from the paper.