"In the 18th Century, it takes much guile for an Irish lad without prospects to win the prestige and privileges of English nobility. It takes far more than guile to avoid losing them."

"B-brave. A-acknowledging. R-resilient. R-reckless. Y-yielding. L-lovelorn. Y-yearning. N-noble. D-deceptive. O-ominous. N-narcissistic."

"(EPILOGUE) It was in the reign of George III that the aforesaid personages lived and quarreled; Good or bad, handsome or ugly, rich or poor, they are all equal now."

"(final lines) Utterly baffled and beaten, what was the lonely and broken-hearted man to do? He took the annuity and returned to Ireland with his mother to complete his recovery. Sometime later he travelled to the Continent. His life there, we have not the means of following accurately. But he appears to have resumed his former profession of a gambler without his former success. He never saw Lady Lyndon again."

"Barry was born clever enough at gaining a fortune, but incapable of keeping one. For the qualities and energies which lead a man to triumph in the former case are often the very cause of his undoing in the latter."

"Five years in the army, and some considerable experience of the world, had by now dispelled any of those romantic notions regarding love with which Barry commenced life. And he began to have it in mind, as so many gentlemen had done before him, to marry a woman of fortune and condition. And, as such things so often happen, these thoughts closely coincided with his setting first sight upon a lady who will henceforth play a considerable part in the drama of his life: the Countess of Lyndon, Viscountess Bullingdon of England, Baroness of Castle Lyndon of the Kingdom of Ireland, a woman of vast wealth and great beauty. She was the wife of The Right Honourable Sir Charles Reginald Lyndon, Knight of the Bath, and Minister to George III at several of the smaller Courts of Europe, a cripple, wheeled about in a chair, worn out by gout and a myriad of diseases. Her Ladyship's Chaplain, Mr. Runt, acted in the capacity of tutor to her son, the little Viscount Bullingdon, a melancholy little boy, much attached to his mother."

"The Prussian service was considerably worse than the English. The life that the private soldier led was a frightful one. Punishment was incessant, and every officer had the right to inflict it. The gauntlet was the most common penalty for minor offences. The more serious ones were punishable by mutilation or death. At the close of the Seven Years' War, the army, so renowned for its disciplined valour, was officered by native Prussians. But it was composed, for the most part, of men from the lowest levels of humanity, hired or stolen from almost every nation in Europe. Thus Barry fell into the very worst of courses and company and was soon very far advanced in the science of every kind of misconduct."

"A lady who sets her heart upon a lad in uniform must prepare to change lovers pretty quickly, or her life will be but a sad one. This heart of Lieschen's was like many a neighbouring town and had been stormed and occupied several times before Barry came to invest it."

"It is well to dream of glorious war in a snug armchair at home, but it is a very different thing to see it first hand. And after the death of his friend, Barry's thoughts turned from those of military glory to those of finding a way to escape the service to which he was now tied for another six years. Gentlemen may talk of the age of chivalry, but remember the ploughmen, poachers and pickpockets whom they lead. It is with these sad instruments that your great warriors and kings have been doing their murderous work in the world."

"Barry's first taste of battle was only a skirmish against a small rearguard of Frenchmen who occupied an orchard beside a road down which, a few hours later, the English main force would wish to pass. Though this encounter is not recorded in any history books, it was memorable enough for those who took part."

"No lad who has liberty for the first time, and twenty guineas in his pocket, is very sad, and Barry rode towards Dublin thinking not so much of the kind mother left alone, and of the home behind him, but of tomorrow, and all the wonders it would bring."

"JoBeth Williams - Dr. Patricia Cromwell"

"[to her accusers] You know neither who you are, nor what you do. But I know who I am; and if I die, it shall be as I have lived — as a Queen — trusting in the mercy of God, my holy father."

"We mortals have many weaknesses; we feel too much, hurt too much or too soon we die, but we do have the chance of love."

"Why be afraid of tomorrow when today is all we have?"

"Elizabeth is darkness. I am light."

"May we have wisdom not to fear shadows in the night, and courage when the day of danger truly dawns."

"[to her army at Tilbury] My loving people. We see the sails of the enemy approaching. We hear the Spanish guns over the water. Soon now, we will meet them face-to-face. I am resolved, in the midst and heat of the battle, to live or die amongst you all. While we stand together, no invader shall pass. Let them come with the armies of Hell; they will not pass! And when this day of battle is ended, we meet again in heaven or on the field of victory."

"Oni Faida Lampley - Madeleine"

"Rondi Reed - Sarah"

"Dominic Keating - Ian"

"Carole Shelley - Fiona"

"Tim Allen - Michael Cromwell"

"Luis Avalos - Abe"

"Frankie J. Galasso - Andrew Kempster"

"Martin Short - Richard Kempster"

"Leelee Sobieski - Karen Kempster"

"Valerie Mahaffey - Jan Kempster"

"Bob Dishy - George Langston"

"David Ogden Stiers - Alexei Jovanovic"

"Sam Huntington - Mimi-Siku"

"Lolita Davidovich - Charlotte"

"French history is reduced to the level of American tabloid-style gossip in [this] staggeringly misguided stab at making the past come alive by people who have absolutely no feel for period filmmaking. Banal at best and laughable at worst."

"The earnest ineptitude of the picture makes it all the more painful to watch gifted actors . . . waste gravity and conviction on roles that could be saved only by parody."

"[to Louis about Antoinette wanting public vindication] The queen offers up a sweet plum before ravens. Pray none takes a bite."

"To Jeanne, the whole of the necklace was not as glorious as what its parts could yield. It was a means to an end. And though I will not justify the actions of the young countess, I late came to understand her reasoning. (pauses) Who does not aspire to take back what was taken from them? Who does not dream of returning home?"

"[to Jeanne, after meeting with the fake Antoinette] I know what you're up to. Antoinette is secretly in love with me. Deny it if you will, but don't ask me to play the fool."

"[on hearing about the necklace plot] I knew something grand was a foot. You can rest assured I will be an asset to this venture."