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Ambassadors are the eye and ear of states.

— Francesco Guicciardini Storia d' Italia (1537)

Gli ambasciadori sono l'occhio e l'orecchio degli stati.

Original text (Italian)

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More quotes by Francesco Guicciardini

Never wage war on religion, nor upon seemingly holy institutions, for this thing has too great a force upon the minds of fools.

Counsels and Reflections (1857)

There is no evil in human affairs that has not some good mingled with it.

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Experience has always shown, and reason also, that affairs which depend on many seldom succeed.

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We fight to great disadvantage when we fight with those who have nothing to lose.

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He who imitates what is evil always goes beyond the example that is set; on the contrary, he who imitates what is good always falls short.

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Attribution

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