In one of the radio stations in my country everyday they describe one of the great moments of history and somthing together with famous quote which was said by someone who took part in one of those historic moments. For example they were talking about famous "Vae Victis" or "Alea iacta est".

Today iv heard a really nice one. It happend when Napoleon and tsar Alexander met for negotiations. When they were walking in the garden they passed by a French guard who had face with many scars and wounds. Tsar Alexander stopped and watched the guards face. Suddenly he asked Napoleon:

 "Sir, what do you think about men who can inflict such wounds?"

Napoleon didnt answer. When they were going to continue their walk, they heard an old guard saying:

"they all are dead".

What are your favourite great quotes of history?

Good one. Iv heard it before but i didnt know where it comes from. Now i know

It can only be the greatest single uncompleted quote in history,

"They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist. . . . . . . . . . "

General John Sedgwick

ROFLMAO.

Winning is not everything, it is the ONLY thing!

Attributed to the professional American football coach Vince Lombardi, this proverb stresses the importance of reaching a goal no matter what effort is required.

There are many more but this one is really special to me as one may take it as aim of his life;

Nothing is impossible in this world even the word itself says "I" "M" "Possible".
(don't know who has said it but certainly it is something special)

I remember that there was a good one about battle of Waterloo but i cant find it anywhere.

Battle is about to finish. Wellington is talking with other british general. One of the last canon balls in the battle hits the leg of the british general and cuts it off. He says to Wellington:

Sir, i think i lost my leg.

Wellington answers:

Im afraid that you are right sir.

Or it was somthing similar to this. I cant find anywhere the exact description of this event and quote.

A tomb now suffices him for whom the whole world was not sufficient.
Alexander the Great

I send you a kaffis of mustard seed, that you may taste and acknowledge the bitterness of my victory.
Alexander the Great
from Letter to King Darius III

Is it not worthy of tears that, when the number of worlds is infinite, we have not yet become lords of a single one?
Alexander the Great
When asked why he wept on hearing there was an infinite number of worlds, from On the Tranquillity of the Mind

I came, I saw, I conquered.
Julius Caesar

It is better to create than to learn! Creating is the essence of life.
Julius Caesar

It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.
Julius Caesar

Some from Ex-Afghan Emir Mullah Mohammad Omer.

I am ready to sacrifice everything in completing the unfinished agenda of our noble Jihad...until there is no bloodshed in Afghanistan and Islam becomes a way of life for our people.
Mullah Mohammad Omer

As for the United States' future in Afghanistan, it will be fire and hell and total defeat, God willing, as it was for their predecessors - the Soviets and, before them, the British.
Mullah Mohammad Omer

Death comes to everyone. We must stand proud as Afghans in the defense of Islam.
Mullah Mohammad Omer

We don't consider the battle has ended in Afghanistan... The battle has begun and its fires are picking up. These fires will reach the White House, because it is the center of injustice and tyranny.
Mullah Mohammad Omer

Reference: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/mohammed_omar.html - Click Here

Some of Afghan Leaders:

"Whatever countries I conquer in the world, I would never forget your beautiful gardens. When I remember the summits of your beautiful mountains, I forget the greatness of the Delhi throne."
Ahamad Shah Durrani

"The first and most important advice that I can give to my successors and people to make Afghanistan into a great kingdom is to impress upon their minds the value of unity; unity, and unity alone, can make it into a great power."
Abdur Rahman Khan (The Iron Emir)

"We will never allow you to dictate to us how to run our country and whom to employ in Afghanistan. How and where we employ the foreign experts will remain the exclusive prerogative of the Afghan state. Afghanistan shall remain poor, if necessary, but free in its acts and decisions."
Daud Khan

"The Americans want us to continue fighting but not to win,
just to bleed the Russians."
Ismael Khan

"As they have come, so they will go."

(Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, after the Battle of Gallipoli. Mustafa Kemal Pasha was the chief commander of the "Anafartalar" troops. He called this victory as getting revenge of the destruction of Troy. Also, one of the three main British warships which was destructed by the Turkish forces was Agamemnon, which was suppoused to bombard and destroy Troy (Çanakkale).

"I have been able to teach many things to this nation, but I haven't been able to teach how to be lackeys."

(Mustafa Kemal Atatürk)

"Sovereignty is not given, it is taken."

(Mustafa Kemal Atatürk)

"Peace at home, peace in the world"

(Mustafa Kemal Atatürk)

"Happy is he who says, "I am a http://www.allaboutturkey.com/origin.htm - Turk "."

(Mustafa Kemal Atatürk)

Originally posted by Digenis Originally posted by Bashibozuk "Happy is he who says, "I am a http://www.allaboutturkey.com/origin.htm - Turk "." (Mustafa Kemal Atatürk)

Dear Digeni,
I think it totaly depends on whom, who has said it. I sure if I was said by a greek he would had said "Happy is he who says, "I am a http://www.allaboutturkey.com/origin.htm - Greek ". so there is nothing to get sad (as seen by your impression   ) about.

Whenever I climb I am followed by a dog called "Ego"

Friedrich Nietsche

One not very lovely, but...

"A single death is a tragedy, a million death is just a statistic"

J.Stalin

Very nice one dear Subotai,
I really love to hear some quotes of people involved in WWs.

I've seen this sentence in some german text of 1929, attributed to french diplomats. is there a primary source for stalin saying this?

One of my favourites is "you really can't eat as much as you want to throw up" by Max Liebermann, watching the nazi parades after their rise to power.

And of course "I'll be back", T-800 Model 101

Everyone wants to live at the expense of the state.They forget that the state wants to live at the expenxe of everyone.

Frederic Bastiat

Russians can give you arms,but only the United States can give you a solution.

Anwar Sadat

Hitler about the soviets:

"We only need to kick the door and the whole rotten house will colapse"

"It's not who votes, it's who counts the votes. "

J.Stalin

"Democracy is too important to leave to chance". (Diebold, manufacturer of voting machines).

Or, from history:

The Earl of Sandwich: "Egad sir, I do not know whether you will die on the gallows or of the pox."

John Wilkes: "That will depend, my Lord, on whether I embrace your principles or your mistress."

(That's right, that Earl of Sandwich.)

"I don't know what effect these men will have upon the enemy, but, by God, they frighten me."

Duke of Wellington of his troops in the Peninsula. Less famously perhaps, when someone commented to him how well the French cavalry had come up at Waterloo, he replied: "Yes, and they went down very well too."

Then there's

"I do not say they will not come. I only say they will not come by sea." Admiral St Vincent on the chances of Napoleon invading Britain.

And we must have something from Churchill, surely:

'When I warned them' [the French] 'that Britain would fight on alone whatever they did, their generals told their Prime Minister and his divided Cabinet, "In three weeks England will have her neck wrung like a chicken." Some chicken! Some neck!' - speech to Canadian Parliament December 1941.

A quote made by a man before he was famous

"Where are you going?"

Lt Pervez Musharraf, Battle of Chawinda 1965 when his battery came under heavy fire, he stayed put and rallied his troops.

"You are a sh*t, a sh*t in a silk stocking!."

Napoleon I to Tallyrend

After the Battle of Manzikert which ended by a total Turkish victory:

Alp Arslan: "What would you do if I was brought before you as a prisoner?"

Romanus Diogenes: "Perhaps I'd kill you, or exhibit you in the streets of Constantinople."

Alp Arslan: "My punishment is far heavier. I forgive you, and set you free."

Finally with the help of Paul i found the quote about Waterloo which i described earlier.

Battle is about to finish. Wellington is talking with general Uxbridge. One of the last canon balls in the battle hits the leg of Uxbridge:

UXBRIDGE: "By God, sir, I've lost my leg!"

WELLINGTON: "By God, sir, so you have!"

"Young men, hear an old man who old men harkened when he was young"

Augustus caeser

At the end of the game, the king and the pawn go in the same box"

Italian proverb

"One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life, that word is love"

Sophocles

"Its amazing that the amount of news that happens in the world every day just exactly fits the newspaper"

Jerry sienfeld

"My goal is to be a failure in life, if I fail my goal I would be successful, and if I succed my goal still I would be successful!" Unknown

  "Few things are harder to put with than the annoyance of a good example".    Mark Twain

                         Frequent source of discord on AE?

"Crime always finds lawyers, and innocence only rarely..."

Albert Camus

"I am Cyrus, King of the World. When I entered Babylon I did not allow anyone to terrorize the land. I kept in view the needs of its people and all its sanctuaries to promote their well being. I put an end to their misfortune. The great God has delivered all lands into my hands, the lands that I have made to dwell in peaceful habitation."

Cyrus The Great

The exact long quote of Cyrus is this:

"I am Kourosh (Cyrus), King of the world, great king, mighty king, king of Babylon, king of the land of Sumer and Akkad, king of the four quarters, son of Camboujiyah (Cambyases), great king, king of Anshân, grandson of Kourosh (Cyrus), great king, king of Anshân, descendant of Chaish-Pesh (Teispes), great king, king of Anshân, progeny of an unending royal line, whose rule Bel and Nabu cherish, whose kingship they desire for their hearts, pleasure. When I well -disposed, entered Babylon, I set up a seat of domination in the royal palace amidst jubilation and rejoicing. Marduk the great god, caused the big-hearted inhabitations of Babylon to .................. me, I sought daily to worship him.

At my deeds Marduk, the great lord, rejoiced and to me, Kourosh (Cyrus), the king who worshipped him, and to Camboujiyah (Cambyases), my son, the offspring of (my) loins, and to all my troops he graciously gave his blessing, and in good sprit before him we glorified exceedingly his high divinity. All the kings who sat in throne rooms, throughout the four quarters, from the Upper to the Lower Sea, those who dwelt in ..................., all the kings of the West Country, who dwelt in tents, brought me their heavy tribute and kissed my feet in Babylon. From ... to the cities of Ashur, Susa, Agade and Eshnuna, the cities of Zamban, Meurnu, Der as far as the region of the land of Gutium, the holy cities beyond the Tigris whose sanctuaries had been in ruins over a long period, the gods whose abode is in the midst of them, I returned to their places and housed them in lasting abodes.

I gathered together all their inhabitations and restored (to them) their dwellings. The gods of Sumer and Akkad whom Nabounids had, to the anger of the lord of the gods, brought into Babylon. I, at the bidding of Marduk, the great lord, made to dwell in peace in their habitations, delightful abodes.

May all the gods whom I have placed within their sanctuaries address a daily prayer in my favour before Bel and Nabu, that my days may be long, and may they say to Marduk my lord, "May Kourosh (Cyrus) the King, who reveres thee, and Camboujiyah (Cambyases) his son ..."

Now that I put the crown of kingdom of Iran, Babylon, and the nations of the four directions on the head with the help of (Ahura) Mazda, I announce that I will respect the traditions, customs and religions of the nations of my empire and never let any of my governors and subordinates look down on or insult them until I am alive. From now on, till (Ahura) Mazda grants me the kingdom favor, I will impose my monarchy on no nation. Each is free to accept it , and if any one of them rejects it , I never resolve on war to reign. Until I am the king of Iran, Babylon, and the nations of the four directions, I never let anyone oppress any others, and if it occurs , I will take his or her right back and penalize the oppressor.

And until I am the monarch, I will never let anyone take possession of movable and landed properties of the others by force or without compensation. Until I am alive, I prevent unpaid, forced labor. To day, I announce that everyone is free to choose a religion. People are free to live in all regions and take up a job provided that they never violate other's rights.

No one could be penalized for his or her relatives' faults. I prevent slavery and my governors and subordinates are obliged to prohibit exchanging men and women as slaves within their own ruling domains. Such a traditions should be exterminated the world over.

I implore to (Ahura) Mazda to make me succeed in fulfilling my obligations to the nations of Iran (Persia), Babylon, and the ones of the four directions. "

source: http://www.iranchamber.com/history/cyrus/cyrus_charter.php - http://www.iranchamber.com/history/cyrus/cyrus_charter.php

• I have never won a debate with an ignorant person.
• The best deed of a great man is to forgive and forget.
• There is no wealth like knowledge, no poverty like ignorance.
• He who has a thousand friends has not a friend to spare
  And he who has one enemy will meet him everywhere.
• Loving one another is half of wisdom.
• One who imagines himself to be all-knowing will surely suffer on account of his ignorance.
• Like your body your mind also gets tired so refresh it by wise sayings.

Imam Ali Bin Abi Talib.

Do not consider the intestinal conflicts of sects: For, not having found the truth, they went to the invention...

~ Hafez Shirazi

All human beings in truth are akin,
All in creation share one origin,
When fate allots, a member pangs and pains,
No ease for others remains,
If unperturbed, another’s grief canst scan,
Thou are not worthy of the name of man. 

"I always thought there were two kinds of people in this world, the kind that go to their death screaming, and the kind that go to their death silently, and then, I met the third kind (that go to their death smiling)." 
(From an Indian Movie Rang De Basanti) It really is a good one so I thaught why not to share it with you guys.

"America hasn't changed much.Every time when I said that I'm from Bulgaria, they say: Oh, Bolivia.To make some fun I said:No, Bulgaria a new american state near canada's border.The incompetense was so great that even one man reply to me:Yes, I know."

-Astor- bulgarian ilusionist

i dont remember the exact name

but he  was the mexican minister of finance

"poor mexico you are too close, to america to away from the god" or something like that.

Death solves all problems - no man, no problem.
Joseph Stalin

Education is a weapon whose effects depend on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed.
Joseph Stalin

Gratitude is a sickness suffered by dogs.
Joseph Stalin

History shows that there are no invincible armies.
Joseph Stalin

If any foreign minister begins to defend to the death a "peace conference," you can be sure his government has already placed its orders for new battleships and airplanes.
Joseph Stalin (very nice one)

A world without nuclear weapons would be less stable and more dangerous for all of us.
Margaret Thatcher

Any woman who understands the problems of running a home will be nearer to understanding the problems of running a country.
Margaret Thatcher

Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren't.
Margaret Thatcher (nice one) 

If you want anything said, ask a man. If you want something done, ask a woman.
Margaret Thatcher

If you set out to be liked, you would be prepared to compromise on anything at any time, and you would achieve nothing.
Margaret Thatcher

I think this one was meant for troops - but I think its universal:

If you're going through hell, keep going.
Winston Churchill

It is unfortunate that most Chinese quotes were hard to translate into English... I will try to translate one by myself, please to laugh

"Worry before the entire world worries, enjoy after the enter world has enjoyed"

- Song dynasty politician Fang, Chuon-Yan

I think I like this one best.

From the Evergetinos ( http://www.goarch.org - www.goarch.org ):

Abba Antonios said: “The time is coming when people will be seized by manias and will behave like madmen. And if they see anyone acting reasonably, they will rise up against him saying: ‘You are insane.’ And they will have accurately said this to him, for he will not be like them.”

A young monk sadly said the following to the holy Poimen: “My body, Abba, has been weakened by ascetic practices, but my passions do not yield.” “The passions, my child,” answered the wise Father, “are similar to tough thorns; in uprooting them, your hands of necessity bleed.”

“I burn with the passion to be martyred for the love of Christ,” a neophyte monk one day said to an experienced elder.

“If you gladly take up your brother’s burden at a time of temptation,” the elder answered him, “it is like being thrown into the furnace with the three Holy Children.”

And see what Abba Moses says of prayer: “Take care to maintain deep in your heart cognizance of your sinful state, that your prayer might be acceptable. When you occupy your mind with your own sins, you will not have time to keep track of the faults of others.”

God requires these three things, which were bestowed in Holy Baptism, from every man: correct belief in his soul, truth on his tongue, and moderation in his body.

“When people honor you, humble yourself all the more at that moment, and say in your mind: ‘If they truly knew who I were, they would show me no regard at all.’ In this way, you will not cause injury to your soul,” a wise elder said.

“If God, in his forbearance, tolerates us when we serve sin,” said a wise elder, “how much more will His mercy strengthen us, when we struggle for what is good.”

Abba Poimen said: “A man may seem silent, but if in his heart he condemns others, he is talking ceaselessly. Yet there may be someone else who talks from morning until night, who, because he says nothing unprofitable, is truly silent.”

“The saints are like various trees, each bearing different fruit, but watered from the same source. The practices of one saint differ from those of another, but the same Spirit works in them,” said one great Father.

One Father says: “The nearer a man draws to God, the more he sees himself a sinner.”

A modern elder said: “Any man who thinks that he can solve his own problems is like a bird which intends to fly without wings.”

“The ancient Fathers,” a certain elder said, “when their spiritual work became known to others, saw this not as a virtue, but as a sin.”

And one of my Favorites:

When Peter was fleeing persecution in Rome he encountered Christ outside the walls. Peter asked "Lord, where are you Going?" To this Christ replied, "I am going to Rome, to be crucified again." Hearing this Peter returned to Rome to be martyred.

-Akolouthos