A. J. P. Taylor - Historian Quotes

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Every historian loves the past or should do. If not, he has mistaken his vocation; but it is a short step from loving the past to regretting that it has ever changed. Conservatism is our greatest trade-risk; and we run psychoanalysts close in the belief that the only "normal" people are those who cause no trouble either to themselves or anybody else.

A. J. P. Taylor

I was a narrative historian, believing more and more as I matured that the first function of the historian was to answer the child's question, "What happened next?"

A. J. P. Taylor

The politician performs upon the stage; the historian looks behind the scenery.

A. J. P. Taylor