History Quotes

"Value people on their potential, not on their history"

"You that would judge me, do not judge alone this book or that, come to this hallowed place where my friends' portraits hang and look thereon; Ireland's history in their lineaments trace; think where man's glory most begins and ends and say my glory was I had such friends"

William Butler Yeats, Poet

"The history of the past interests us only in so far as it illuminates the history of the present"

Ernest Dimnet, Priest

"It's up to history to judge"

Pol Pot, Criminal

"I thought I had to make an impact on history. I had to become the greatest choreographer of my time. That was my mission. Posterity deals with us however it sees fit. But I gave it 20 years of my best shot"

Twyla Tharp, Dancer

"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is God's gift, that's why we call it the present"

Joan Rivers, Comedian

"The future is not Big Government. Self-serving politicians. Powerful bureaucrats. This has been tried, tested throughout history. The result has always been disaster. President Obama, your agenda is not new. It's not change, and it's not hope"

Rush Limbaugh, Entertainer

"I'm the biggest fighter in the history of the sport. If you don't believe it, check the cash register"

Mike Tyson, Athlete

"Do you seriously expect me to be the first Prince of Wales in history not to have a mistress?"

Prince Charles, Royalty

"The subject of history is the gradual realization of all that is practically necessary"

Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel, Poet

"The German national character is a favorite subject of character experts, probably because the less mature a nation, the more she is an object of criticism and not of history"

Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel, Poet

"Our nation was created in ways that allow human potential to prosper, and it created the greatest nation for people in the history of humanity. Now Obama is dismantling it, because he has no appreciation for our greatness. In fact, he resents it. He blames this country for whatever evils he sees around the world"

Rush Limbaugh, Entertainer

"Nowhere else in history has there ever been a flag that stands for the right to burn itself. This is the fractal of our flag. It stands for the right to destroy itself"

Ken Kesey, Author

"Religion is part of the human make-up. It's also part of our cultural and intellectual history. Religion was our first attempt at literature, the texts, our first attempt at cosmology, making sense of where we are in the universe, our first attempt at health care, believing in faith healing, our first attempt at philosophy"

Christopher Hitchens, Author

"But let me tell you, this gender thing is history. You're looking at a guy who sat down with Margaret Thatcher across the table and talked about serious issues"

George H. W. Bush, President

"I come back to the same thing: We've got the greatest pipeline in the company's history in the next 12 months, and we've had the most amazing financial results possible over the last five years, and we're predicting being back at double-digit revenue growth in fiscal year '06"

Steve Ballmer, Businessman

"A man acquainted with history may, in some respect, be said to have lived from the beginning of the world, and to have been making continual additions to his stock of knowledge in every century"

David Hume, Philosopher

"There is not to be found, in all history, any miracle attested by a sufficient number of men, of such unquestioned good sense, education and learning, as to secure us against all delusion in themselves"

David Hume, Philosopher

"Throughout out history, when people have looked for new ways to solve their problems, and to uphold the principles of this nation, many times they have turned to political parties. They have often turned to the Democratic Party"

Barbara Jordan, Politician

"History books that contain no lies are extremely dull"

Anatole France, Novelist

"History develops, art stands still"

E. M. Forster, Novelist

"At many points during our nation's history, there have been times - known in our history textbooks as "panics" - when adverse conditions affecting the financial and economic sectors of the country have caused individuals to hoard more than they need"

Jo Bonner, Politician

"Never in our country's history have we witnessed a natural disaster that has impacted so many people in such a wide area. In fact, as of the writing of this column, millions of people along the Gulf Coast have been displaced from their homes in a period of only five days"

Jo Bonner, Politician

"Remember that in every single case in history the process of adaptation has been one of exceeding slowness. Do not look for the impossible, but do not let your path deviate from the quiet and steadfast insistence on full opportunities for your powers"

Franz Boas, Scientist

"Judging from the main portions of the history of the world, so far, justice is always in jeopardy"

Walt Whitman, Poet

"I have behind me not only the splendid traditions and the annals of more than a thousand years but the living strength and majesty of the Commonwealth and Empire; of societies old and new; of lands and races different in history and origins but all, by God's Will, united in spirit and in aim"

Queen Elizabeth II, Royalty

"Madam President, speaking here in Dublin Castle it is impossible to ignore the weight of history, as it was yesterday when you and I laid wreaths at the Garden of Remembrance"

Queen Elizabeth II, Royalty

"All objects, all phases of culture are alive. They have voices. They speak of their history and interrelatedness. And they are all talking at once!"

Camille Paglia, Author

"I lead no party; I follow no leader. I have given the best part of my life to careful study of Islam, its law and polity, its culture, its history and its literature"

Muhammad Iqbal, Poet

"Whether you like it or not, history is on our side. We will bury you!"

Nikita Khrushchev, Statesman

"History repeats itself, but the special call of an art which has passed away is never reproduced. It is as utterly gone out of the world as the song of a destroyed wild bird"

Joseph Conrad, Novelist

"In fact, there are more homeowners today than ever before in the history of our Nation and more minority homeowners than ever before in the history of our Nation"

Todd Tiahrt, Politician

"Today, there are more Americans working than ever before in the history of our Nation, and the average wage of those workers is higher than it has ever been in the history of our Nation"

Todd Tiahrt, Politician

"It is capitalist America that produced the modern independent woman. Never in history have women had more freedom of choice in regard to dress, behavior, career, and sexual orientation"

Camille Paglia, Author

"Peyton Manning is doing things that I think no other quarterback in the history of the league has done at the line of scrimmage... I just think they are a team right now that's got a real chance to run the table"

Don Shula, Coach