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At one time the benevolent affections embrace merely the family, soon the circle expanding includes first a class, then a nation, then a coalition of nations, then all humanity, and finally, its influence is felt in the dealings of man with the animal world. In each of these stages a standard is formed, different from that of the preceding stage, but in each case the same tendency is recognised as virtue.

— William Edward Hartpole Lecky A History of European Morals from Augustus to Charlemagne (1869)

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More quotes by William Edward Hartpole Lecky

The great difficulty of Christianity is that many of the Bible revelations seem to clash with our sense of justice and right.

The Religious Tendencies of the Age (1860)

The great art in politics consists not in hearing those who speak, but in hearing those who are silent.

The map of life; conduct and character (1899)

Terror is everywhere the beginning of religion.

History of the Rise and Influence of the Spirit of Rationalism in Europe (1910)

There have certainly been many periods in history when virtue was more rare than under the Caesars; but there has probably never been a period when vice was more extravagant or uncontrolled.

A History of European Morals from Augustus to Charlemagne (1869)

There was a tradition that Pythagoras had himself penetrated to India, and learnt philosophy from the gymnosophists.

A History of European Morals from Augustus to Charlemagne (1869)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: William Edward Hartpole Lecky (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.