Quotes from Barbara W. Tuchman

Medieval political structure was ideally a contract exchanging service and loyalty in return for protection, justice, and order.

Christine makes it her own in the prologue, where she sits weeping and ashamed, wondering why men "are so unanimous in attributing wickedness to women" and why "we should be worse than men since we were also created by God.

The cracking of old and famous structures is slow and internal, while the facade holds.

Human behavior is timeless.

A great imperative imparts a wonderful impulse to the spirit.

if people could be made to save money, the King could obtain it when necessary.

There is no record what Asquith replied or what, in his inmost mind, a region difficult to penetrate under the best of circumstances, he thought on this crucial question.

Enormity of the stakes became the new self-hypnosis.

It might be the destiny of the Jewish race," he said, "to be the bridge between Asia and Europe, to bring the spirituality of Asia to Europe and the vitality of Europe to Asia." At

Despised as ineffective, they were ineffective because they were despised.

Within the army, field officers despised Staff officers as "having the brains of canaries and the manners of Potsdam," but both groups were as one in their distaste for interference by civilian ministers who were known as "the frocks." The civil arm in its turn referred to the military as "the boneheads.

His only weakness was the habit of prophesying war within the next fortnight. George Bernard Shaw

Officers succumbed to the spirit of conspirators.

fireflies were the souls of unbaptized dead infants.

the symptoms of depression, despair or melancholy, and lethargy were considered by the Church the sin of accidia or sloth.

it was unthinkable to sell land, was to sell communal privileges or commute labor services and bonds of serfdom for a money rent.

The problem with research, of course, was knowing when to stop. "One must stop before one has finished," she advised, "otherwise, one will never stop and never finish.

The policy of the victors after World War II in contrast to the Treaty of Versailles and the reparations exacted after World War I is an actual case of learning from experience and putting what was learned into practice—an opportunity that does not often present itself. The occupation of Japan according to a post-surrender policy drafted in Washington, approved by the Allies and largely carried out by Americans, was a remarkable exercise

Wherever the Reformation took hold the Bible replaced the Pope as the final spiritual authority.

lugubrious" atmosphere.

To the two men it seemed that the government and capital of France were left without means of defense and unable to command any. Only one resource was left - Gallieni.

He said, "McKinley was going around the country shouting prosperity when there was no prosperity for the poor man.

The country listened to thousands of speeches and read thousands of newspaper columns raking over every argument for and against imperialism and every aspect of the war in the Philippines.

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