“In ancient times the State absorbed authorities not its own, and intruded on the domain of personal freedom. In the Middle Ages it possessed too little authority, and suffered others to intrude. Modern States fall habitually into both excesses.”

—  John Dalberg-Acton, 1st Baron Acton

p, 125
The History of Freedom in Antiquity (1877)

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John Dalberg-Acton, 1st Baron Acton 112
British politician and historian 1834–1902

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