"Only a fool learns from his own mistakes. The wise man learns from the mistakes of others."
"A really great man is known by three signs: generosity in the design, humanity in the execution, moderation in success."
Source: Speech to the Budget Commission of the Prussian Diet, September 30, 1862.
About the author
Otto von Bismarck
Statesman, Chancellor
Otto von Bismarck was a German statesman known for unifying Germany and pioneering realpolitik, emphasizing power and diplomacy.
All quotes by Otto von Bismarck →Same author
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"One day the great European War will come out of some damned foolish thing in the Balkans (1888)."
"What we learn from History is that no one learns from History"
"The division of the United States into federations of equal force was decided long before the Civil War by the high financial powers of Europe. These bankers were afraid that the United States, if they remained in one block and as one nation, would attain economic and financial independence, which would upset their financial domination over the world. The voice of the Rothschilds prevailed... Therefore they sent their emissaries into the field to exploit the question of slavery and to open an abyss between the two sections of the Union."
"The Americans are a very lucky people. They're bordered to the north and south by weak neighbors, and to the east and west by fish."
"God has a special providence for fools, drunks, and the United States of America."