Charles De Gaulle

"A great country worthy of the name does not have any friends. "

"As an adolescent ... I was convinced that France would have to go through gigantic trials, that the interest of life consisted in one day rendering her some signal service and that I would have the occasion to do so. "

"Deliberation is the function of many, action is the function of one. "

"Diplomats are useful only in fair weather. As soon as it rains they drown in every drop. "

"For glory gives herself only to those who have always dreamed of her. "

"How can anyone govern a nation that has 246 different kinds of cheese "

"How can one conceive of a one-party system in a country that has over 200 varieties of cheeses "

"How can you govern a country which has 246 varieties of cheese "

"I have against me the bourgeois, the military and the diplomats, and for me, only the people who take the Mtro. "

"I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians. "

"I have heard your views. They do not harmonize with mine. The decision is taken unanimously. "

"I have tried to lift France out of the mud. But she will return to her errors and vomitings. I cannot prevent the French from being French. "

"I predict you will sink step by step into a bottomless quagmire, however much you spend in men and money. (On Vietnam War) "

"I respect only those who resist me, but I cannot tolerate them. "

"In order to become the master the politician poses as the servant. "

"In politics it is necessary either to betray one's country of the electorate. I prefer to betray the electorate. "

"It will not be any European statesman who will unite Europe Europe will be united by the Chinese. "

"Love is the strongest force the world possesses, and yet it is the Greatness of a road leading towards the unknown. "

"My dear and old country, here we are once again together faced with a heavy trial. "

"Nothing great will ever be achieved without great men, and men are great only if they are determined to be so. "

"Now I shall return to my village and there will remain at the disposition of the nation. "

"Once upon a time there was an old country, wrapped up in habit and caution. ... We have to transform our old France into a new country and marry it to its time. "

"Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first nationalism, when hate for people other than your own comes first. "

"Silence is the ultimate weapon of power. "

"Since a politician never believes what he says, he is quite surprised to be taken at his word. "

"Since a politician never believes what he says, he is surprised when others believe him. "

"The better I get to know men, the more I find myself loving dogs. "

"The graveyards are full of indispensable men. "

"The great leaders have always stage-managed their effects. "

"The national task that had been incumbent upon me for 18 years is hereby confirmed. "

"To govern is always to choose among disadvantages. "

"Treaties are like roses and young girls. They last while they last. "

"What do you take me for, an idiot "

"When I want to know what France thinks, I ask myself. "

"You may be sure that the Americans will commit all the stupidities they can think of, plus some that are beyond imagination. "

"You start out giving your hat, then you give your coat, then your shirt, then your skin and finally your soul. "