"The act of policing is, in order to punish less often, to punish more severely."

"Men are moved by two levers only: fear and self interest."

"Four hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets."

"Take time to deliberate, but when the time for action has arrived, stop thinking and go in."

"Water, air, and cleanness are the chief articles in my pharmacy."

"If I had to choose a religion, the sun as the universal giver of life would be my god."

"England is a nation of shopkeepers."

"The battlefield is a scene of constant chaos. The winner will be the one who controls that chaos, both his own and the enemies."

"The best way to keep one's word is not to give it."

"The word impossible is not in my dictionary."

"Among those who dislike oppression are many who like to oppress."

"Courage is like love; it must have hope for nourishment."

"When soldiers have been baptized in the fire of a battle-field, they have all one rank in my eyes."

"An army marches on its stomach."

"The best cure for the body is a quiet mind."

"Nothing is more difficult, and therefore more precious, than to be able to decide."

"Great ambition is the passion of a great character. Those endowed with it may perform very good or very bad acts. All depends on the principles which direct them."

"Skepticism is a virtue in history as well as in philosophy."

"He who knows how to flatter also knows how to slander."

"If you want a thing done well, do it yourself."

"It requires more courage to suffer than to die."

"The army is the true nobility of our country."

"A Constitution should be short and obscure."

"War is the business of barbarians."

"If they want peace, nations should avoid the pin-pricks that precede cannon shots."

"Ambition never is in a greater hurry that I; it merely keeps pace with circumstances and with my general way of thinking."

"You must not fear death, my lads; defy him, and you drive him into the enemy's ranks."

"Ability is nothing without opportunity."

"Men take only their needs into consideration - never their abilities."

"Power is my mistress. I have worked too hard at her conquest to allow anyone to take her away from me."

"There is one kind of robber whom the law does not strike at, and who steals what is most precious to men: time."

"There are only two forces that unite men - fear and interest."

"You must not fight too often with one enemy, or you will teach him all your art of war."

"Glory is fleeting, but obscurity is forever."

"We must laugh at man to avoid crying for him."

"A man cannot become an atheist merely by wishing it."

"There are only two forces in the world, the sword and the spirit. In the long run the sword will always be conquered by the spirit."

"He who fears being conquered is sure of defeat."

"The herd seek out the great, not for their sake but for their influence; and the great welcome them out of vanity or need."

"Doctors will have more lives to answer for in the next world than even we generals."

"France has more need of me than I have need of France."

"Men are more easily governed through their vices than through their virtues."

"Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich."

"In order to govern, the question is not to follow out a more or less valid theory but to build with whatever materials are at hand. The inevitable must be accepted and turned to advantage."