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Politicians in all ages have felt similarly inclined to draw a line between public expediency and personal conscience.

— Ian Mortimer The Fears of Henry IV: The Life of England's Self-made King (2007)

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More quotes by Ian Mortimer

If the revolution is to be wholly successful, all the counter-revolutions must be defeated.

The Fears of Henry IV: The Life of England's Self-made King (2007)

In medieval theater, it is not so much bad reviews which you need to fear but excommunication.

The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England (2008)

Local justice is designed to find somebody guilty; it does not necessarily follow that that somebody is the person responsible for the crime in question.

The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England (2008)

Which path would the kingdom choose: tyranny in the name of loyalty? Or treason in the name of justice?

The Fears of Henry IV: The Life of England's Self-made King (2007)

A kiss is a fleeting thing, but once it has taken place it cannot be undone.

The Fears of Henry IV: The Life of England's Self-made King (2007)

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Men accept servility in order to acquire wealth; as if they could acquire anything of their own when they cannot even assert that they belong to themselves.

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The confusion of marriage with morality has done more to destroy the conscience of the human race than any other single error.

George Bernard Shaw Man and Superman (1903)

Of all tyrannies a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.

C. S. Lewis God in the Dock (1970)

Affectation hides three times as many virtues as charity does sins.

Horace Mann Thoughts Selected from the Writings of Horace Mann (1867)

Attribution

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