Skip to content

Vainglory, however, no matter how much medieval Christianity insisted it was a sin, is a motor of mankind, no more eradicable than sex. As long as combat was desirable as the source of honor and glory, the knight had no wish to share it with the commoner, even for the sake of success.

— Barbara Tuchman A Distant Mirror (1978)

Another quote →

More quotes by Barbara Tuchman

When truth and reason cannot be heard, then must presumption rule.

A Distant Mirror (1978)

Nothing is more certain than death and nothing uncertain but its hour.

A Distant Mirror (1978)

Against men habituated to lawless force, violent punishment failed to bring the violence under control.

A Distant Mirror (1978)

If it is not profitable for the common good that authority should be retained, it ought to be relinquished.

A Distant Mirror (1978)

For most people reform meant relief from ecclesiastical extortions.

A Distant Mirror (1978)

All Barbara Tuchman quotes →

Attribution

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