"For a quarter of a century, at least, he was without question the first public servant of England; not the first in position only, but in knowledge of the public business, and in capacity for transacting it throughout all its departments; the man to whom all good public servants looked up as their model and their worthy chief. He must be credited with all the industry, the self-control, the patience, the judgment which such a part required. His integrity was as great as his other qualities; no jobbery, no connivance at abuses stains his name. Setting party questions aside, he was the man who would have been chosen as the chief ruler of England by the almost unanimous voice of the English people, and a heavy price was paid for party when he was excluded from the administration during ten of the best years of his life, and banished from power at the moment when the national confidence in him was at its height."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Prime Ministers of the United KingdomPoliticians from EnglandAcademics from the United KingdomConservative Party (UK) politiciansPeople from Manchester
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Goldwin Smith, ‘Sir Robert Peel’, The Eclectic Magazine of Foreign Literature, Science and Art, New Series, Vol. IX, No. 2 (February 1869), p. 131
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Robert_Peel
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Robert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834-1835) and twice as Home Secretary (1822–1827 and 1828–1830). He is regarded as the father of modern English policing, owing to hi
84 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Robert Peel →
Related Quotes
"Peel is, in fact, the embodied reflex of the public mind of England."
"He says no other Minister but Sir Robert Peel could have carried the repeal of the Corn Laws; that half the commercia…"
"[F]or God's sake, be sure, if the King is driven to the wall, of Peel. An appeal to him and his countrymen could not …"
"Whether he was a model of statesmanship may be doubted. Models of statesmanship are rare, if by a model of statesmans…"
"Peel's speech is, to me, the most affecting public event which I ever remember: no return of Cicero from exile, no tr…"
"[W]hat was Peel really notable for? It was surely the perfection of what may be called “concessionary” Conservatism. …"
"[T]he right hon. Baronet at the head of the Government is a man of considerable capabilities as a legislator: he poss…"
"Lord Robert Cecil while at Oxford occasionally joined in the debates of the Union Society, taking the strong Tory sid…"
"[T]he people at large did care and enthusiastically care for the Conservative statesman who had sacrificed power to g…"
"Your Lordships must all feel the high and honourable character of the late Sir Robert Peel. I was long connected with…"