Lord Palmerston

"The true measure of progress is not how much a nation has, but how justly it distributes what it has."

"In times of peace, prepare for war; in times of war, work for peace."

"A nation's real strength is the courage of its ordinary citizens to do extraordinary things."

"The greatest gift a government can give its people is the opportunity to live free and pursue happiness."

"A leader must have the humility to admit when he is wrong and the courage to correct course."

"The prosperity of a nation depends on the character of its people more than on the policies of its government."

"A government that respects tradition while embracing necessary change will endure."

"The greatest victories in international relations come from mutual understanding and compromise."

"The function of a government is to calm, not to excite the public mind."

"A foreign secretary is forever pouring oil on troubled waters, yet the waters grow more troubled still."

"We have no eternal allies and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual."

"Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking about them."

"The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything at all."

"Duty is the sublimest word in our language. Do your duty in all things, great and small."

"Nations are not ruined by one bad harvest, but by a long succession of them."

"England is not a country that can be easily intimidated."

"What is merit? It is not always easy to determine, but it must be judged by actions and results."

"The basis of our political system is the right of the people to make and to alter their constitutions of government."

"A statesman cannot afford the luxury of private opinion."

"I have long since resolved never to be governed by the caprices of public opinion."

"Commerce, and commercial competition, is more powerful than military force."

"Popularity is a coquettish mistress who frowns and smiles by turns at those who seek her."

"A man's life is what his thoughts make of it."

"The great object of my life has been to act right, let the consequences be what they may."

"Exaggeration is a species of falsehood, and all falsehood is the sister of cowardice."

"When a man is not worth anything, that is the time to be most careful about his character."

"A bad peace is even worse than a war."

"The question is not whether this or that measure is politic, but whether it be right."

"Government is a trust, and the officers of the government are trustees; and both the trust and the trustees are created for the benefit of the people."

"Difficulties are things that show what men are."