"There is no doubt, however, that I have caused unhappiness to great numbers. But for me three great wars would not have taken place, eighty thousand men would not have been killed and would not now be mourned by parents, brothers, sisters, and widows. [...] I have settled that with God, however. But I have had little if any pleasure from all that I have done, while on the other hand I have had a great deal of worry, anxiety, and trouble."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Military leaders from GermanyPrussiansChancellors of GermanyGerman foreign ministersMinisters of Germany
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Spoken on 21 October 1877, according to Moritz Busch in Bismarck: Some Secret Pages of His History, Volume II This quote is preceded by Moritz stating that Bismarck "complained to us that he had had little pleasure or satisfaction from his political life. He had made no one happy thereby, neither himself, nor his family, nor others." Leo Tolstoy includes a variant of this quotation in his work A Calendar of Wisdom.
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Otto_von_Bismarck
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Related Quotes
"Der König herrscht aber regiert nicht."
"Die Politik ist keine exakte Wissenschaft."
"I ask you what right had I to close the way to the throne against these people? The kings of Prussia have never been …"
"I shall soon be compelled to undertake the conduct of the Prussian Government. My first care will be to reorganise th…"
"I grant that I am full of prejudices; I sucked them in with my mother's milk, and I cannot possibly argue them away."
"Nicht durch Reden und Majoritätsbeschlüsse werden die großen Fragen der Zeit entschieden — daß ist der große Fehler v…"
"Faust complains of having two souls in his breast. I have a whole squabbling crowd. It goes on as in a republic."
"The social insecurity of the worker is the real cause of their being a peril to the state."
"I am of opinion that the idea of the Christian State is as old as the ci-devant Holy Roman Empire, as old as all the …"
"Only a country's most vital interests justify its embarking on war. ... Aye, I made the war of 1866, fulfilling my ha…"