Winston Churchill Quotes

“Like other systems in decay, the Roman Empire continued to function for several generations after its vitality was sapped. For nearly a hundred years our Island was one of the scenes of conflict between a dying civilisation and lusty, famishing barbarism.”

“I love learning, but hate being taught.”

“No compromise with the main purpose; no peace till victory; no pact with unrepentant wrong.”

“You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks.”

“Listing your personal milestones is like storing a pocketful of sunshine for a rainy day. Sometimes our best is simply not enough.... We have to do what is required.”

“There is no greater mistake than to suppose that platitudes, smooth words, timid policies, offer today a path to safety.”

“Writing a book is an adventure.”

“All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honour, duty, mercy, hope.”

“It is of no account; after all, the old bird does not fly far from his nest.”

“Nature has not intended mankind to work from eight in the morning until midnight without that refreshment of blessed oblivion which, even if it only lasts twenty minutes, is sufficient to renew all the vital forces.”

“Make for the children an evening of happiness in a world of storm. Let the children have their night of fun and laughter... resolved that by our daring, these same children shall not be denied their right to live in a free and decent world.”

“Before Alamein we never had a victory. After Alamein we never had a defeat.”

“Victory will never be found by taking the path of least resistance.”

“The facilities for advanced education must be evened out and multiplied. No one who can take advantage of a higher education should be denied this chance. You cannot conduct a modern community except with an adequate supply of persons upon whose education, whether humane, technical, or scientific, much time and money have been spent.”

“It is more agreeable to have the power to give than to receive.”

“The only guide to a man's conscience, the only shield to his memory is the rectitude and sincerity of his actions.”

“To secure your historical standing, be sure you are the first to write about it.”

“The POSITIVE THINKER sees the INVISIBLE, feels the INTANGIBLE, and achieves the IMPOSSIBLE.”

“There is a good saying to the effect that when a new book appears one should read an old one. As as author I would not recommend too strict an adherence to this saying.”

“One evening at Chequers the film was Oliver Twist. Rufus, as usual, had the best seat in the house, on his master's lap. At the point when Bill Sikes was about to drown his dog to put the police off his track, Churchill covered Rufus's eyes with his hand. He said, "Don't look now, dear. I'll tell you about it afterwards."”

“There are two processes which we adopt consciously or unconsciously when we try to prophesy. We can seek a period in the past whose conditions resemble as closely as possible those of our day, and presume that the sequel to that period will, save for some minor alterations, be similar. Secondly, we can survey the general course of development in our immediate past, and endeavor to prolong it into the near future. The first is the method the historian; the second that of the scientist. Only the second is open to us now, and this only in a partial sphere.”

“Life is fraught with opportunities to keep your mouth shut.”

“I want no criticism of America at my table. The Americans criticize themselves more than enough.”

“We shall defend every village, every town and every city. The vast mass of London itself, fought street by street, could easily devour an entire hostile army; and we would rather see London laid in ruins and ashes than that it should be tamely and abjectly enslaved.”

“Playing golf is like chasing a quinine pill around a cow pasture.”