Quotes by George Washington

• War - An act of violence whose object is to constrain the enemy, to accomplish our will.
• The constitution vests the power of declaring war in Congress; therefore no offensive expedition of importance can be undertaken until after they shall have deliberated upon the subject and authorized such a measure.
• Nothing can be more hurtful to the service, than the neglect of discipline; for that discipline, more than numbers, gives one army the superiority over another.
• Observe good faith and justice toward all nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all.
• Over grown military establishments are under any form of government inauspicious to liberty, and are to be regarded as particularly hostile to republican liberty.
• My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.
• Some day, following the example of the United States of America, there will be a United States of Europe.
• The administration of justice is the firmest pillar of government.
• The basis of our political system is the right of the people to make and to alter their constitutions of government.
• The Constitution is the guide which I never will abandon.
• My observation is that whenever one person is found adequate to the discharge of a duty... it is worse executed by two persons, and scarcely done at all if three or more are employed therein.
• The foolish and wicked practice of profane cursing and swearing is a vice so mean and low that every person of sense and character detests and despises it.
• The marvel of all history is the patience with which men and women submit to burdens unnecessarily laid upon them by their governments.
• The time is near at hand which must determine whether Americans are to be free men or slaves.
• The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference - they deserve a place of honor with all that's good.
• There can be no greater error than to expect, or calculate, upon real favors from nation to nation. It is an illusion which experience must cure, which a just pride ought to discard.
• True friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity, before it is entitled to the appellation.
• When we assumed the Soldier, we did not lay aside the Citizen.
• Worry is the interest paid by those who borrow trouble.
• Truth will ultimately prevail where there is pains to bring it to light.
• My first wish is to see this plague of mankind, war, banished from the earth.
• To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace.
• It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one.
• Mankind, when left to themselves, are unfit for their own government.
• I can only say that there is not a man living who wishes more sincerely than I do to see a plan adopted for the abolition of slavery.
• I have no other view than to promote the public good, and am unambitious of honors not founded in the approbation of my Country.
• We should not look back unless it is to derive useful lessons from past errors, and for the purpose of profiting by dearly bought experience.
• I hope I shall possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.
• Happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected.
• I walk on untrodden ground. There is scarcely any part of my conduct which may not hereafter be drawn into precedent.
• If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.
• It is better to be alone than in bad company.
• It is far better to be alone, than to be in bad company.
• Lenience will operate with greater force, in some instances than rigor. It is therefore my first wish to have all of my conduct distinguished by it.
• Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.
• Let your heart feel for the afflictions and distress of everyone, and let your hand give in proportion to your purse.
• Let your Discourse with Men of Business be Short and Comprehensive.
• If we desire to avoid insult, we must be able to repel it; if we desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful instruments of our rising prosperity, it must be known, that we are at all times ready for War.
• Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair; the rest is in the hands of God.
• It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the Bible.
• Laws made by common consent must not be trampled on by individuals.
• Labor to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire, called conscience.
• It will be found an unjust and unwise jealousy to deprive a man of his natural liberty upon the supposition he may abuse it.
• It may be laid down as a primary position, and the basis of our system, that every Citizen who enjoys the protection of a Free Government, owes not only a proportion of his property, but even of his personal services to the defense of it.
• Let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.
• Bad seed is a robbery of the worst kind: for your pocket-book not only suffers by it, but your preparations are lost and a season passes away unimproved.
• Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master.
• Friendship is a plant of slow growth and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation.
• Firearms are second only to the Constitution in importance; they are the peoples' liberty's teeth.
• Few men have virtue to withstand the highest bidder.
• Experience teaches us that it is much easier to prevent an enemy from posting themselves than it is to dislodge them after they have got possession.
• Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence.
• Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism.
• Associate with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation; for it is better to be alone than in bad company.
• Arbitrary power is most easily established on the ruins of liberty abused to licentiousness.
• A slender acquaintance with the world must convince every man that actions, not words, are the true criterion of the attachment of friends.
• Discipline is the soul of an army. It makes small numbers formidable; procures success to the weak, and esteem to all.
• Success is not always about how high you climb; but how you inspire others to climb with you.
• The only way to achieve your goals is to stop talking about them and start working on them.