Lectures on Modern History |
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Acton alliance army Austria authority became began better Bishop c'est Calvin Calvinists Cardinal Catholic cause century Charles Christian Church civilisation clergy conscience constitution Council Counter-Reformation crown Danube death defeated divine doctrine dominions Duke Dutch ecclesiastical Elector Emperor empire enemy England English Erasmus Europe fait favour force France Frederic French friends Gallican gave Germany Geschichte Habsburgs Henry Huguenots ideas influence interest Italian Italy James Jesuits king knew l'histoire League Leibniz Lewis XIV liberty Lord Acton Luther Lutherans master medieval ment ministers Modern History monarchy moral n'est Naples never opinion Papacy parliament party peace Philip Philosophie Poland political politique Pope Prince of Orange princes principle Protestant Protestantism qu'il queen Reformation reign religion religious Renaissance resistance Revolution Richelieu Rome Russia scheme secured Spain Spaniards Spanish struggle success things thought throne tion toleration treaty truth victory Whigs William William of Orange
Popular passages
Page 324 - Yet no one whose opinion deserves a moment's consideration can doubt that most of the great positive evils of the world are in themselves removable, and will, if human affairs continue to improve, be in the end reduced within narrow limits.
Page 323 - Scripture is not yet understood, so, if it ever comes to be understood before the ' restitution of all things,' * and without miraculous interpositions ; it must be in the same way as natural knowledge is come at : by the continuance and progress of learning and of liberty ; and by particular persons attending to, comparing' and pursuing, intimations scattered up and down it, which are overlooked and disregarded by the generality of the world.
Page 324 - All the grand sources, in short, of human suffering are in a great degree, many of them almost entirely, conquerable by human care and effort; and though their removal is grievously slow - though a long succession of generations will perish in the breach before the conquest is completed, and this world becomes all that, if will and knowledge were not wanting, it might easily be...
Page 311 - They who have the power to appoint officers and magistrates, it is in their power, also, to set the bounds and limitations of the power and place unto which they call them.
Page 1 - are vulgar when they are not liberalised by history, and history fades into mere literature when it loses sight of its relation to practical politics.
Page 328 - You are not to inquire how your trade may be increased, nor how you are to become a great and powerful people, but how your liberties can be secured ; for liberty ought to be the direct end of your government.
Page 314 - Powers were made more favourable by the final success of Rodney at Dominica and of Elliot at Gibraltar ; but the warlike repute of England fell lower than at any time since the Revolution. The Americans proceeded to give themselves a Constitution which should hold them together more effectively than the Congress which carried them through the war, and they held a Convention for the purpose at Philadelphia during the summer of 1787. The difficulty was to find terms of union between the three great...
Page 332 - ... arrive in any wise. Not that he does not say what he means, and in strong words too; but he cannot say it all; and what is more strange, will not, but in a hidden way and in parables, in order that he may be sure you want it.
Page 8 - It is a most powerful ingredient in the formation of character and the training of talent, and our historical judgments have as much to do with hopes of heaven as public or private conduct Convictions that have been strained through the instances and the comparisons of modern times differ immeasurably in solidity and force from those which every new fact perturbs, and which are often little better than illusions...
Page 332 - Believe it, my good friend, to love truth for truth's sake is the principal part of human perfection in this world, and the seed-plot of all other virtues ; and, if I mistake not, you have as much of it as ever I met with in any body.