"Nor is it any longer possible for you to give up this empire … Your empire is now like a tyranny: it may have been wrong to take it; it is certainly dangerous to let it go."
— Pericles

January 1, 1970

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Added on April 10, 2026
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OratorsPolitical leadersPeople from AthensMilitary leaders from GreecePeople of the Peloponnesian War
Original Language: English

Sources

Book 2, chapter 63: Pericles' third speech — This verse is sometimes freely translated as Empires are dangerous things to possess for, once you have them, it is very difficult to let them go.