“I was very glad when Mr. Attlee described my speeches in the late war as expressing the will not only of Parliament but of the whole nation. I have never accepted what many people have kindly said—namely, that I inspired the nation. Their will was resolute and remorseless and it proved unconquerable. It fell to me to express it and if I found the right word you must remember that I have always earned my living by my pen, and by my tongue.”

— Winston S. Churchill

Speech in Westminster Hall (30 November 1954), quoted in The Times (1 December 1954), p. 11
Post-war years (1945–1955)

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "I was very glad when Mr. Attlee described my speeches in the late war as expressing the will not only of Parliament but…" by Winston S. Churchill?

Winston S. Churchill 601

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 1874–1965

Takehiko Inoue (1967) Japanese artist

Source: How 'Slam Dunk' Manga artist brings characters to life https://edition.cnn.com/2012/11/29/showbiz/takehiko-inoue-human-to-hero/index.html,CNN

“I have tried many times to express my feelings, but at each attempt, I find myself tongue-tied.”

Kate Cary book Bloodline

Source: Bloodline

“In the course of my life I have often had to eat my words, and I must confess that I have always found it a wholesome diet.”

Winston S. Churchill (1874–1965) Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

Quoted by Lord Normanbrook in Action This Day: Working With Churchill. Memoirs by Lord Norman Brook (And Others) http://books.google.com/books?id=qxchAAAAMAAJ&q=%22in+the+course+of+my+life+I+have+often+had+to+eat+my+words+and+I+must+confess+that+I+have+always+found+it+a+wholesome+diet%22&pg=PA28#v=onepage (1968)
Often misquoted as: Eating my words has never given me indigestion. http://books.google.com/books?id=vbsU21fEhLAC&q=%22Eating+my+words+has+never+given+me+indigestion%22&pg=PA486#v=onepage.
Post-war years (1945–1955)

“If ink and pen are snatched from me, shall I
Who have dipped my finger in my heart's blood complain—
Of if they seal my tongue, when I have made
A mouth of every round link of my chain?”

Faiz Ahmad Faiz (1911–1984) Punjabi poet

Poems by Faiz, translated by Victor Kiernan, 1971, p. 117
Poetry, Stanzas

“I would say that music is the easiest means in which to express, but since words are my talent, I must try to express clumsily in words what the pure music would have done better.”

William Faulkner (1897–1962) American writer

“You say they have the right of property in their slaves. Suppose they have, how sacred is this right of property? I want to argue the moral question of it. How sacred is this right of property in the living bodies and souls of men? Just as sacred as it is in a horse? Just as sacred as the tenure of property in a mule? Suppose it is, you own them. As you own a horse or mule. Is the right of property in a horse more sacred than my life? Is the right of property in a mule more sacred than my right to free speech? I tell them, and I tell the people all over the country, if they have a system of an institution that will not allow me to live or speak or read my papers, or worship my God as I please, then I say in God's name that thing must die. My rights I will have!”

Owen Lovejoy (1811–1864) American politician

As quoted in His Brother's Blood: Speeches and Writings, 1838–64 https://web.archive.org/web/20160319081405/https://books.google.com/books?id=qMEv8DNXVbIC&pg=PA238#v=onepage&q&f=false (2004), edited by William Frederick Moore and Jane Ann Moore, p. 238
1860s, Speech (October 1860)

“Since I expressed my views…in July last year, I have sought to negotiate a position which would allow me to defend my stance in public, especially when it is questioned. The BBC has required that I do not speak on matters on which my stance is already known. That is not acceptable to me. I have therefore asked the corporation to accept my resignation as South Asia correspondent.”

Mark Tully (1935) British journalist

When he quit BBC due to differences with John Birt, the Director General of BBC.
Source: Peter Victor, " Tully quits BBC http://www.independent.co.uk/news/tully-quits-bbc-1412865.html," The Independent, 10 July 1994

“Within the last fifty years, I have found it the most profitable plan to meditate with my pen in my hand, writing down the outlines, as the Word is opened to me.”

George Müller (1805–1898) German-English clergyman

A Narrative of Some of the Lord's Dealings with George Müller Written by Himself, First Part.
First Part of Narrative

“I have to respect my life, and free expression is part of my life. I can never really silence myself.”

Ai Weiwei (1957) Chinese concept artist

2010-, You’re There but You’re Not Existing, 2012

“I have found that sitting in a place where you have never sat before can be inspiring - I wrote my very best poem while sitting on the hen-house.”

Dodie Smith book I Capture the Castle

Source: I Capture the Castle

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Winston S. Churchill 601

Related quotes

Related topics