In 1917 European history, in the old sense, came to an end. World history began. It was the year of Lenin and Woodrow Wilson, both of whom repudiated the traditional standards of political behaviour. Both preached Utopia, Heaven on Earth. It was the moment of birth for our contemporary world.

One of the penalties of being president of the United States is that you must subsist for four years without drinking anything except Californian wine.

The God of Battles will throw the dice that decide.

If there had been no troublemakers, no Dissenters, we should still be living in caves.

If men are to respect each other for what they are, they must cease to respect each other for what they own.

Rather an end in horror, than horror without end. He could not condemn principles he might need to invoke and apply later. The wolf cannot help having been created by God as he is, but we shoot him all the same if we have to. The great player in diplomacy, as in chess, asks the question,Does this improve me?, not look at the possible fringe benefits If you can't have what you like, you must like what you have.

Like most of those who study history, he (Napoleon III) learned from the mistakes of the past how to make new ones.