History
Thomas Jefferson on Liberty
I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. Thomas Jefferson 3rd president of US (1743 – 1826)
Anonymous Quote
“Write a wise saying and your name will live forever.” Anonymous
George Santayana on History
“Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” George Santayana
Sir William Preece on the Telephone
“The Americans have need of the telephone, but we do not. We have plenty of messenger boys.” Sir William Preece Chief engineer of the British Post Office, 1876
Napoleon Bonaparte on History
“History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon.” Napoleon Bonaparte
William Shakespeare on Honesty
“Though I am not naturally honest, I am so sometimes by chance.” William Shakespeare Greatest English dramatist & poet (1564 – 1616)
Aristotle on Politics
“Democracy is when the indigent, and not the men of property, are the rulers.” Aristotle
Edward Gibbon on History
“History is indeed little more than the register of the crimes, follies and misfortunes of mankind.” Edward Gibbon English historian of Rome (1737 – 1794)
H. G. Wells on History and Education
“Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe.” H. G. Wells, Outline of History (1920) English author, historian, & utopian (1866 – 1946)
Voltaire on History and Crime
“Indeed, history is nothing more than a tableau of crimes and misfortunes.” Voltaire French author, humanist, rationalist, & satirist (1694 – 1778)
John F. Kennedy on History
“History is a relentless master. It has no present, only the past rushing into the future. To try to hold fast is to be swept aside.” John F. Kennedy
Robertson Davies on Future
“The world is full of people whose notion of a satisfactory future is, in fact, a return to the idealised past.” Robertson Davies, “A Voice from the Attic”, 1960
Robert E. Lee on War
“It is well that war is so terrible – otherwise we would grow too fond of it.” Robert E. Lee, Statement at the Battle of Fredericksburg (13th December 1862) US-Confederate general (1807 – 1870)
Neil Armstrong’s Famous Quote
“This is one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” Neil Armstrong (1930 – 2012) Apollo 11 astronaut, first man on the Moon.
Winston Churchill on Democracy
“It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.” Sir Winston Churchill British politician (1874 – 1965)
Charles de Gaulle on History
“I have tried to lift France out of the mud. But she will return to her errors and vomitings. I cannot prevent the French from being French.” Charles de Gaulle
Helen Keller on Knowledge
“Knowledge is happiness, because to have knowledge – broad, deep knowledge – is to know true ends from false, and lofty things from low. To know the thoughts and deeds that have marked man’s progress is to feel the great heartthrobs of humanity through the centuries; and if one does not feel in these pulsations a heavenward striving, one must indeed be deaf to the harmonies of life.” Helen Keller
Thomas Jefferson on Dreams and History
“I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past.” Thomas Jefferson
Herb Caen on the Past
“I tend to live in the past because most of my life is there.” Herb Caen
John Kenneth Galbraith on Politics
“Under capitalism, man exploits man. Under communism, it’s just the opposite.” John Kenneth Galbraith US (Canadian-born) administrator & economist (1908 – 2006)
George Bernard Shaw on History
“If history repeats itself, and the unexpected always happens, how incapable must Man be of learning from experience.” George Bernard Shaw Irish dramatist & socialist (1856 – 1950)
L. Frank Baum on Imagination
“Imagination has brought mankind through the dark ages to its present state of civilization. Imagination led Columbus to discover America. Imagination led Franklin to discover electricity.” L. Frank Baum
Martin Luther King, Jr. on History
“We are not makers of history. We are made by history.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
King Solomon on Value
“Good people are remembered long after they are gone, but the wicked are soon forgotten.” Solomon a king of Israel and a thinker
Dwight D. Eisenhower on War
“Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.” Dwight D. Eisenhower
Christopher Columbus on Exploration
“Following the light of the sun, we left the Old World.” Christopher Columbus
Mogens Jallberg on Democracy vs. Feudalism
“In democracy it’s your vote that counts; In feudalism it’s your count that votes.” Mogens Jallberg
King Farouk of Egypt on Politics
“The whole world is in revolt. Soon there will be only five Kings left–the King of England, the King of Spades, The King of Clubs, the King of Hearts, and the King of Diamonds.” King Farouk of Egypt, 1948 king of Egypt 1936-1952 (1920 – 1965)
Thomas Sowell on History and Society
“Much of the social history of the Western world over the past three decades has involved replacing what worked with what sounded good.” Thomas Sowell, Is Reality Optional?, 1993 (1930 – )