Monarchs From Greece

"Παρακαλούμενος δὲ πάλιν ἀκοῦσαι τοῦ τὴν ἀηδόνα μιμουμένου, παρῃτήσατο φήσας, “Αὐτᾶς ἄκουκα.”"

"Ἐπεὶ δὲ κατέπλευσεν εἰς τὴν Αἴγυπτον, εὐθὺς οἱ πρῶτοι τῶν βασιλικῶν ἡγεμόνων καὶ διοικητῶν ἐβάδιζον ἐπὶ ναῦν θεραπεύοντες αὐτόν. ἦν δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων Αἰγυπτίων σπουδή τε μεγάλη καὶ προσδοκία διὰ τοὔνομα καὶ τὴν δόξαν τοῦ Ἀγησιλάου, καὶ συνετρόχαζον ἅπαντες ἐπὶ τὴν θέαν. ὡς δὲ ἑώρων λαμπρότητα μὲν καὶ κατασκευὴν οὐδεμίαν, ἄνθρωπον δὲ πρεσβύτην κατακείμενον ἔν τινι πόᾳ παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν, εὐτελῆ καὶ μικρὸν τὸ σῶμα, τραχὺ καὶ φαῦλον ἱμάτιον ἀμπεχόμενον, σκώπτειν αὐτοῖς καὶ γελωτοποιεῖν ἐπῄει, καὶ λέγειν ὅτι τοῦτο ἦν τὸ μυθολογούμενον "ὠδίνειν ὄρος, εἶτα μῦν ἀποτεκεῖν"."

"On his death-bed, charging his friends that no fiction or counterfeit (so he called statues) should be made of him, Agesilaus said, “If I have done any honorable exploit, that is my monument; but if I have done none, all your statues will signify nothing.”"

"To one commending the skill of a certain orator in magnifying petty matters, the king replied, “I do not think that shoemaker a good workman who makes a great shoe for a little foot.”"

"Accepting an inferior seat at a public dancing, Agesilaus said, “It is not the places which grace men, but men the places.”"

"When a well-contrived but difficult plan to free Greece was proposed to Agis II, he replied, “Friend, thy words need an army and a treasure.”"

"Youth, thy words need an army."

"When asked what good the laws of Lycurgus had brought to Sparta, he replied, “Contempt of pleasure;” and in answer to the question how he acquired his great reputation for bravery, “By contemning death.” Agis II made the same answer when asked how a man could be always free."

"Being shown a well-walled city, and asked if it were not a fine thing; “For women,” he answered, “not men, to live in.” Thus Agis II, observing the high and strong walls of Corinth, asked, “What women live there?”"

"When asked where the boundaries of Sparta were, he replied, “On the points of our spears.”"

"He showed the citizens in arms to one who asked why Sparta had no walls, with the words, “These are the walls of Sparta.” He used to say that “cities should be walled with the courage of the inhabitants.”"

"Having kept at a distance the enemies of Sparta, he could say, “No Spartan woman has ever seen the smoke of the enemy’s camp.”"

"When asked why they wore their hair long, he replied, “Because of all personal ornaments it costs the least.”"

"From this course of life, we reap liberty."

"When asked what boys should learn, he replied, “That which they will use when men.”"

"Observing that a certain malefactor bore torture with remarkable firmness, he said, “What a great rogue he must be, whose courage and constancy are bestowed on crime alone!”"

"Τοῦ δὲ ἰατροῦ Μενεκράτους, ἐπεὶ κατατυχὼν ἔν τισιν ἀπεγνωσμέναις θεραπείαις Ζεὺς ἐπεκλήθη, φορτικῶς ταύτῃ χρωμένου τῇ προσωνυμίᾳ καὶ δὴ καὶ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἐπιστεῖλαι τολμήσαντος οὕτως· “Μενεκράτης Ζεὺς βασιλεῖ Ἀγησιλάῳ χαίρειν,” ἀντέγραψε· “Βασιλεὺς Ἀγησίλαος Μενεκράτει ὑγιαίνειν.”"

"Καίτοι τῷ λόγῳ πανταχοῦ τὴν δικαιοσύνην ἀπέφαινε πρωτεύειν τῶν ἀρετῶν· ἀνδρείας μὲν γὰρ οὐδὲν ὄφελος εἶναι, μὴ παρούσης δικαιοσύνης, εἰ δὲ δίκαιοι πάντες γένοιντο, μηδὲν ἀνδρείας δεήσεσθαι."

"[...] when it is a question of foreign affairs, great international questions, I think that so long as I believe a thing is right or not right, I must insist upon its being done or not being done, because I am responsible before God."

"Constantinos must go, for he has betrayed Greece. But why should his son suffer for the folly of his father? The Crown Prince shares his father's guilt, but his younger sons are only boys, and they can be trained to become worthy Kings of Greece. It is only on condition that you preserve the dynasty that shall consent to return to Athens."

"The Emperor knows that my personal sympathies and my political opinions draw me to his side [...] After deep reflection it is, however, impossible for me to see how I could be of service to him by mobilizing at once my Army [...] I am forced to think that neutrality is imposed on us which may be useful to him, and I assure him that I will not touch any of my neighbours who are his friends, as long as they do not touch our local Balkan interests. [...] What I ask for to-day is to put into execution that which we have so often discussed together."

"When he is with me, I confess that his arguments are so convincing that I quickly begin to imagine that they are my own."

"Fill high the bowl with Samian wine! We will not think of themes like these! It made Anacreon’s song divine: He served—but served Polycrates— A tyrant; but our masters then Were still, at least, our countrymen."

"Polycrates, tyrant of Samos, ruled over many islands and many cities of the mainland. These he had subdued with his ships and his bowmen; for it was said that he plundered friend and foe alike, and that he was successful in everything he undertook. Now he had a friend, Amasis, king of Egypt, who, when he heard of Polycrates's great prosperity, sent him a letter, saying that he feared that some great misfortune would come upon him, "For the gods," he said, "are jealous, and in the end destroy miserably all those who are prosperous in everything." So he bade him ponder which one of his possessions he held most valuable, and at the loss of which he would grieve most, and to throw this away in such wise that his eyes should never see it again. For he hoped that by this advice he might be able to save his friend, and that after this his good luck would alternate with misfortune.Now, when Polycrates read this letter, it seemed to him that Amasis gave him good advice; so he decided to throw away a seal-ring which he was wont to wear. It was an emerald set in gold, and he thought he would grieve most at the loss of this. So he manned a ship of fifty oars, and put out, and then, in the sight of all those with him, flung the ring into the sea. A few days after this a fisherman brought to the palace a huge fish, saying that it seemed to him too fine to be taken to market, but worthy rather to be given to the king. So Polycrates, pleased at the gift and at the man's words, invited him to dinner. Now one may well wonder at what I am about to tell; but in the belly of the fish was found this same ring. At this Polycrates was pleased and wrote to Amasis, telling him what he had done. But Amasis broke off his friendship with him, thinking that calamity was sure to come upon one so lucky."

"Τοῦτο μὲν, ὦ Φαινέα, καὶ τυφλῷ δῆλον."

"Nihil tam incertum nec tam inaestimabile est quam animi multitudinis."

"The speech is admirable, but the speaker is not to be trusted; for he has never been amid the blare of trumpets."

"Be moderate when prosperous, but prudent when unfortunate."

"Pleasures are transitory, but honor is immortal."

"Democracy is better than tyranny."

"Gain is disgraceful."

"Rashness is dangerous."

"Practice does everything."

"Tranquility is a good thing."

"Because to abdicate it voluntarily, and to have it taken from one, are both dangerous."

"Punish not only those who do wrong, but those who intend to do so."

"Whatever you agree to do, observe. —Do not divulge secrets."

"Be the same to your friends when they are prosperous, and when they are unfortunate."

"From Themistocles began the saying, "He is a second Hercules.""

"Men who hover over their opponents have no cause to evolve a science of wrestling; and Theseus is conventionally shown in combat with hulking of monstrous enemies, living by his wits. The tradition that he emulated the feats of Herakles may well embalm some ancient sneer at the over-compensation of a small assertive man. Napoleon comes to mind. If one examines the legend in this light, a well-defined personality emerges. It is that of a light-weight; brave and aggressive, physically tough and quick; highly sexed and rather promiscuous; touchily proud, but with a feeling for the underdog; resembling Alexander in his precocious competence, gift of leadership, and romantic sense of destiny."

"The ship wherein Theseus and the youth of Athens returned from Crete had thirty oars, and was preserved by the Athenians down even to the time of Demetrius Phalereus, for they took away the old planks as they decayed, putting in new and stronger timber in their places, in so much that this ship became a standing example among the philosophers, for the logical question of things that grow; one side holding that the ship remained the same, and the other contending that it was not the same."

"Theseus was, of course, bravest of the brave, as all heroes are; but, unlike other heroes, he was as compassionate as he was brave, and a man of great intellect as well as great bodily strength. It was natural that the Athenians should have such a hero, because they valued thought and ideas, as no other part of the country did. In Theseus their ideal was embodied."

"The Spartans do not ask how many the enemies are but where they are."

"In peace the sons bury their fathers, but in war the fathers bury their sons."

"I consider myself King of the Hellenes and sole expression of legality in my country until the Greek people freely decide otherwise. I fully expected that the [military] regime would depose me eventually. They are frightened of the Crown because it is a unifying force among the people."

"I don't have a name - my family doesn't have a name. The law that Mr. Papandreou passed basically says that he considers that I am not Greek and that my family was Greek only so long as we were exercising the responsibilities of sovereign, and I had to go out and acquire a name. The problem is that my family originates from Denmark, and the Danish royal family haven't got a surname."

"If the Greek people decide that they want a republic, they are entitled to have that and should be left in peace to enjoy it."

"Sadly, he's mean as well as stupid, and takes advantage of our generosity."

"I've always been a republican, naturally, and I certainly can't say I sympathise with Constantine... I'm not interested in stating whether or not I like him. What interests me is whether or not he's useful in the fight against the junta."

"Weep not for me: suffering, as I do, unjustly, I am in a happier case than my murderers."