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Cornelius Nepos Quotes

b. 110

Cornelius Nepos (c. 110 – c. 25 BC) was a Roman biographer. He was born at Hostilia, a village in Cisalpine Gaul not far from Verona.

Random Cornelius Nepos quote

10 quotes

The hatred of absolute power and the wretched life of those who prefer to be feared rather than loved.

I am convinced that nothing was more to his disadvantage than the excessive confidence in his ability and valour.

But the disparagement of the multitude overcame the courage of one man.

The mother of one who knows what fear is seldom has cause to weep.

We measure a man’s greatness by his merit and not by his fortune.

’Tis each man’s character his fortune makes.

He found it so easy to endure narrow means that from his public services he gained nothing but glory.

So that he seemed to depart not from life, but from one home to another.

He was tasteful rather than magnificent, distinguished rather than extravagant; and all his efforts were in the direction of elegance, not of excess.

It is a common fault of great states which enjoy freedom that jealousy waits upon glory and that the people take pleasure in humbling those whom they see rising above the level of their fellows. Those of moderate means cannot regard with patience the good fortune of others who are rich.

Attribution

Quotes and notes from Wikiquote: Cornelius Nepos (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.