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@xy, member from Sept. 25, 2023

Favourite quotes (21448)

“Muhammad was a prince; he rallied his compatriots around him. In a few years, the Muslims conquered half of the world. They plucked more souls from false gods, knocked down more idols, razed more pagan temples in fifteen years than the followers of Moses and Jesus did in fifteen centuries. Muhammad was a great man. He would indeed have been a god, if the revolution that he had performed had not been prepared by the circumstances.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Campagnes d'Egypte et Syrie, Paris, Imprimerie Nationale, 1998, p. 275. Translated by John Tolan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Tolan in European Accounts of Muhammad's Life http://www.academia.edu/1834648/European_Accounts_of_Muhammads_Life. Napoleon wrote his memoirs on the island of Saint Helena. It is here he develops his portrait of Muhammad as a model lawmaker and conqueror.

“Unite for the public safety, if you would remain an independent nation.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Proclamation to the French People (22 June 1815)

“The completest charlatan that ever existed.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Thomas Paine, as quoted in Thomas Paine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-670-03788-5, by Craig Nelson, p. 299. <br class="br">About

“The military principles of Caesar were those of Hannibal, and those of Hannibal were those of Alexander — to hold his forces in hand, not to be vulnerable at any point, to throw all his forces with rapidity on any given point.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“The people must not be counted upon; they cry indifferently : "Long live the King!" and "Long live the Conspirators!" a proper direction must be given to them, and proper instruments employed to effect it.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Source: Political Aphorisms, Moral and Philosophical Thoughts (1848), p. 246

“The hand that gives is above the hand that takes. (La main qui donne est au-dessus de celle qui reçoit.)”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Italian saying, quoted by Bonaparte during the first Italian campaign to highlight the financial dependence of the Directoire on the plunder from the Army of Italy, according to Lucian S. Regenbogen, Napoléon a dit : aphorismes, citations et opinions, p. 82.
Attributed

“It must be recognized that the real truths of history are hard to discover. Happily, for the most part, they are rather matters of curiosity than of real importance.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“Wherever wood can swim, there I am sure to find this flag of England.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Statement at Rochefort (July 1815)

“Necessity dominates inclination, will, and right.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“A cowardly act! What do I care about that? You may be sure that I should never fear to commit one if it were to my advantage.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Quoted by George Gordon Andrews in Napoleon in Review (1939) http://books.google.com/books?id=hnvRAAAAMAAJ&q=&quot;A+cowardly+act+What+do+I+care+about+that+You+may+be+sure+that+I+should+never+fear+to+commit+one+if+it+were+to+my+advantage&quot;&pg=PA8#v=onepage

“Our hour is marked, and no one can claim a moment of life beyond what fate has predestined.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

To Dr. Arnott (April 1821)

“A general must be a charlatan.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“The general of the sea has need of only one science, that of navigation. The one on land has need of all, or of a talent which is the equivalent of all, that will enable him to profit by all experience, and all knowledge. A general of the sea has nothing to divine. He knows where his enemy is, he knows his strength. A general on land never knows anything with certainty, never sees his enemy well, and never knows positively where he is.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“The bullet that will kill me is not yet cast.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Statement at Montereau (17 February 1814)

“The life of a citizen is the property of his country.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Political Aphorisms, Moral and Philosophical Thoughts (1848)

“Ordinarily men exercise their memory much more than their judgment.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“We frustrate many designs against us by pretending not to see them.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“From triumph to downfall is but a step. I have seen a trifle decide the most important issues in the gravest affairs.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“The fool has one great advantage over a man of sense — he is always satisfied with himself.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)

“The religious zeal which animates priests, leads them to undertake labors and to brave perils which would be far beyond the powers of one in secular employment.”

Napoleon I of France (1769–1821) French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French

Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)