“Leave your weapons here. Go home. Pray you never cross my path again.”
—Wellington, to what’s left of the militia after Merrymeeting Bay
“People of Louisiana! Here I am and here I shall remain, until the King of England or the Angel of Death command my departure.”
—Major General John Keane
“I can still shoot, but someone else will have to help me reload.”
—New York Governor and militia leader Daniel D. Tompkins, after his left wrist is shattered in battle, causing him to lose the hand
“GOD DAMN IT! Peace! War! Take New Orleans! Give it back! Take it away again! Sail to America! Sail back to England! And everything seven weeks late! IS THIS ANY WAY TO RUN AN EMPIRE? IS THIS ANY WAY TO FIGHT A WAR?”
—Wellington, not having a good day
“I am as important as I can make myself. No more, no less. Just like everyone else. I think that’s what frightens you.”
—Napoleon to Blücher, at Velaine
“I say this in bitterness — no weak and helpless nation can call itself a republic. Not while it has a strong neighbor with a mind to dictate terms.”
—John Quincy Adams
“France was one nation — only one. She was smaller than Russia in size and population, poorer than Britain, less militaristic than Prussia. Yet for many years she had the strength to fight all these nations in concert, and dealt out defeats as often as she suffered them.
“Our wise men find it easier to speak of this as a miracle and a wonder, brought about by the genius of the Emperor, than to learn from it; for in their hearts they know the lesson, and they fear its implications. They do not wish to discover the power of a nation cleansed of parasites, where skill and diligence are rewarded, wealth circulates instead of accumulating, and aristocrats must either provide service commensurate to their status, or else perish.
“They do not wish to draw the conclusion that the sword of Napoleon was forged from the guillotine of Robespierre.”
“The difference between the Conservative and Jacobin Parties is that both of them think we drink the blood of Christian babies… but the Jacobins would like us to share it with them.”
