18th-century Diplomat Quotes

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord
Klemens von Metternich
François-Joachim de Pierre de Bernis
Joel Barlow
John Hector St. John
Percy Smythe, 6th Viscount Strangford
Hugh Elliot

Women sometimes forgive a man who forces the opportunity, but never a man who misses one.

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord
Of these no more. From Orders, Slaves and Kings,
To thee, O Man, my heart rebounding springs.
Behold th' ascending bliss that waits your call,
Heav'n's own bequest, the heritage of all.
Awake to wisdom, seize the proffer'd prize;
From shade to light, from grief to glory rise.
Freedom at last, with Reason in her train,
Extends o'er earth her everlasting reign…

Joel Barlow
Joel Barlow
Men are like plants; the goodness and flavor of the fruit proceeds from the peculiar soil and exposition in which they grow.

John Hector St. John
John Hector St. John
Of his downfall:
I feel obliged to call to the supporters of the social uprising: Citizens of a dream-world, nothing is altered. On 14 March 1848, there was merely one man fewer.

Klemens von Metternich
Klemens von Metternich
If something pleasant happens to you, don't forget to tell it to your friends, to make them feel bad.

Would you know the qualities a man lacks, examine those of which he boasts.

Today we only smile, we laugh no more,
And e'en our very pleasures seem to bore.

François-Joachim de Pierre de Bernis
François-Joachim de Pierre de Bernis
Just like Love is yonder rose,
Heavenly fragrance round it throws,
Yet tears its dewy leaves disclose,
And in the midst of briars it blows
Just like Love.

Percy Smythe, 6th Viscount Strangford
Percy Smythe, 6th Viscount Strangford
No sign of purpose can be detected in any part of the vast universe disclosed by our most powerful telescopes.

Hugh Elliot
Hugh Elliot