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A people elated by pride, or soured by discontent, is seldom qualified to form a just estimate of their actual situation.

— Edward Gibbon The History of the Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire (1776)

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More quotes by Edward Gibbon

There exists in human nature a strong propensity to depreciate the advantages, and to magnify the evils, of the present times.

The winds and waves are always on the side of the ablest navigators.

The History of the Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire (1776)

In a distant age and climate the tragic scene of the death of Hussyn will awaken the sympathy of the coldest reader.

The History of the Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire (1776)

The principles of a free constitution are irrecoverably lost, when the legislative power is nominated by the executive.

The History of the Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire (1776)

Vicissitudes of fortune, which spares neither man nor the proudest of his works, which buries empires and cities in a common grave.

The History of the Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire (1776)

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