Patriotism - Wikiquote Patriotism Jump to: navigation , search If you think in terms of people divided up into countries, you won't follow me. The idea of countries is going by the boards. Young people are getting wonderfully uprooted and they're too strong to get sucked into this 'country' crap. Patriotism is devotion to one's own country and concern for its defence. Frequently compared or contrasted with nationalism , which is devotion to one's own ethnos . Contents Quotes[ edit ] Alphabetized by author The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend -them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors. They purchased them for us with toil, and danger, and expense of treasure and blood, and transmitted them to us with care and diligence. It will bring an everlasting mark of infamy on the present generation, enlightened as it is, if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or be cheated out of them by the artifices of false and designing men. Of the latter, we are in most danger at present.

Let us therefore be aware of it. Let us contemplate our forefathers and posterity, and resolve to maintain the rights bequeathed to us from the former for the sake of the latter. Instead of sitting down satisfied with the efforts we have already made, which is the wish of our enemies, the necessity of the times more than ever calls for our utmost circumspection, deliberation, fortitude, and perseverance. Let us remember that "if we suffer tamely a lawless attack upon our liberty, we encourage it, and involve others in our doom!" It is a very serious consideration, which should deeply impress our minds, that millions yet unborn may be the miserable sharers in the event! Samuel Adams , written as "Candidus" in The te (14 October 1771), later published in The Life and Public Services of Samuel Adams (1865) by William R. Vincent Wells, p. 425. Who would not be that youth? What pity is it That we can die but once to save our country! Joseph Addison , Cato, A Tragedy (1713), Act IV, scene 4.

To be a good patriot, a man must consider his countrymen as God's creatures, and himself as accountable for his acting towards them. Bishop Berkeley , reported in Josiah Hotchkiss Gilbert, Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), p. 442. Patriotism, n. Combustible rubbish ready to the torch of any one ambitious to illuminate his name. In Dr. Johnson's famous dictionary patriotism is defined as the last resort of a scoundrel. With all due respect to an enlightened but inferior lexicographer I beg to submit it is the first. Ambrose Bierce , The Devil's Dictionary (1911). If modern youth has realized, as I believe it has, that to live for one's country is a finer type of patriotism than to die for it, then the youth of my generation will not, after all, have laid down the best of its life in vain. Vera Brittain , "Youth and War", 13 December 1934. Quoted in Paul Berry and Mark Bostridge, Vera Brittain: A Life. Chatto and Windus, 1995. (p. 305).

The unbought grace of life, the cheap defence of nations, the nurse of manly sentiment and heroic enterprise, is gone! Edmund Burke , Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790), Volume III, p. 331. “My country, right or wrong”, is a thing that no patriot would think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying, “My mother, drunk or sober”. G. K. Chesterton , The Defendant (1901), p. 166. The Nation has need of all that can be contributed to it through the best efforts of all its citizens. The colored people have repeatedly proved their devotion to the high ideals of our country. They gave their services in the war with the same patriotism and readiness that other citizens did. The records of the selective draft show that somewhat more than 2,250,000 colored men were registered. The records further prove that, far from seeking to avoid participation in the national defense, they showed that they wished to enlist before the selective service act was put into operation, and they did not attempt to evade that act afterwards.

Calvin Coolidge , as quoted in commencement address at Howard University (6 June 1924), Washington, D.C. The propaganda of prejudice and hatred which sought to keep the colored men from supporting the national cause completely failed. The black man showed himself the same kind of citizen, moved by the same kind of patriotism, as the white man. They were tempted, but not one betrayed his country . Among well-nigh 400,000 colored men who were taken into the military service, about one-half had overseas experience. They came home with many decorations and their conduct repeatedly won high commendation from both American and European commanders. Calvin Coolidge , as quoted in commencement address at Howard University (6 June 1924), Washington, D.C. Patriotism is an ephemeral motive that scarcely ever outlasts the particular threat to society that aroused it. Denis Diderot , Observations on the Drawing Up of Laws (written in 1774 for Catherine the Great; published 1921). No matter that patriotism is too often the refuge of scoundrels. Dissent , rebellion , and all-around hell-raising remain the true duty of patriots.

Barbara Ehrenreich "Family Values," The Worst Years of Our Lives: Irreverent Notes from a Decade of Greed (1991). Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism—how passionately I hate them! Albert Einstein , Ideas and opinions, p. 10, chapter: "The world as I see it", translated by Sonja Bargmann from Mein Weltbild edited by Varl Seeling. Wings Books (New York), ISBN 978-0517003930 . I am against any nationalism, even in the guise of mere patriotism. Privileges based on position and property have always seemed to me unjust and pernicious, as did any exaggerated personality cult. Albert Einstein , My Credo (1932) America now is stumbling through the darkness of hatred and divisiveness. Our values, our principles, and our determination to succeed as a free and democratic people will give us a torch to light the way. And we will survive and become the stronger—not only because of a patriotism that stands for love of country, but a patriotism that stands for love of people. Gerald R.

Ford , address to the state conference of the Order of DeMolay, Grand Rapids, Michigan (September 7, 1968); in Michael V. Doyle, ed., Gerald R. Ford, Selected Speeches (1973), p. 77. Nationalism is our form of incest, is our idolatry, is our insanity. "Patriotism" is its cult. It should hardly be necessary to say, that by "patriotism" I mean that attitude which puts the own nation above humanity, above the principles of truth and justice; not the loving interest in one's own nation, which is the concern with the nation's spiritual as much as with its material welfare—never with its power over other nations. Just as love for one individual which excludes the love for others is not love, love for one's country which is not part of one's love for humanity is not love, but idolatrous worship. Erich Fromm , in The Sane Society (1955). There are two Americas. One is the America of Lincoln and Adlai Stevenson ; the other is the America of Teddy Roosevelt and the modern superpatriots.

One is generous and humane, the other narrowly egotistical; one is self-critical, the other self-righteous; one is sensible, the other romantic; one is good-humored, the other solemn; one is inquiring, the other pontificating; one is moderate, the other filled with passionate intensity; one is judicious and the other arrogant in the use of great power. J. William Fulbright , The Arrogance of Power (1966). If you think in terms of people divided up into countries, you won't follow me. The idea of countries is going by the boards. Young people are getting wonderfully uprooted and they're too strong to get sucked into this 'country' crap.

Buckminster Fuller , quoted in "The View from the Year 2000" by Barry Farrell in LIFE magazine (26 February 1971) It should be the work of a genuine and noble patriotism to raise the life of the nation to the level of its privileges; to harmonize its general practice with its abstract principles; to reduce to actual facts the ideals of its institutions; to elevate instruction into knowledge; to deepen knowledge into wisdom; to render knowledge and wisdom complete in righteousness; and to make the love of country perfect in the love of man. Henry Giles , reported in Josiah Hotchkiss Gilbert, Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), p. 442. Patriotism ruins history. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe , Conversation with Friedrich Wilhem Riemer (July, 1817). Conceit, arrogance, and egotism are the essentials of patriotism. … Patriotism assumes that our globe is divided into little spots, each one surrounded by an iron gate. Those who have had the fortune of being born on some particular spot, consider themselves better, nobler, grander, more intelligent than the living beings inhabiting any other spot.

It is, therefore, the duty of everyone living on that chosen spot to fight, kill, and die in the attempt to impose his superiority upon all the others. Emma Goldman , Patriotism: a menace to liberty. We Americans claim to be a peace-loving people. We hate bloodshed; we are opposed to violence. Yet we go into spasms of joy over the possibility of projecting dynamite bombs from flying machines upon helpless citizens. We are ready to hang, electrocute, or lynch anyone, who, from economic necessity, will risk his own life in the attempt upon that of some industrial magnate. Yet our hearts swell with pride at the thought that America is becoming the most powerful nation on earth, and that she will eventually plant her iron foot on the necks of all other nations. Such is the logic of patriotism. Emma Goldman , What is Patriotism? (1908). Thinking men and women the world over are beginning to realize that patriotism is too narrow and limited a conception to meet the necessities of our time. Emma Goldman , What is Patriotism? (1908).

When we have undermined the patriotic lie, we shall have cleared the path for the great structure where all shall be united into a universal brotherhood — a truly free society. Emma Goldman , What is Patriotism? (1908). Leo Tolstoy … defines patriotism as the principle that will justify the training of wholesale murderers. Emma Goldman in a speech titled What is patriotism? delivered in 1908. The difference between patriotism and nationalism is that the patriot is proud of his country for what it does, and the nationalist is proud of his country no matter what it does; the first attitude creates a feeling of responsibility, but the second a feeling of blind arrogance that leads to war. Sydney J. Harris , Strictly Personal (1953), "Purely Personal Prejudices". I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.

Nathan Hale , last words before being hanged by the British as a spy, (September 22, 1776), according to the account by William Hull based on reports by British Captain John Montresor who was present and who spoke to Hull under a flag of truce the next day: ‘On the morning of his execution,’ continued the officer, ‘my station was near the fatal spot, and I requested the Provost Marshal to permit the prisoner to sit in my marquee, while he was making the necessary preparations. Captain Hale entered: he was calm, and bore himself with gentle dignity, in the consciousness of rectitude and high intentions. He asked for writing materials, which I furnished him: he wrote two letters, one to his mother and one to a brother officer.’ He was shortly after summoned to the gallows. But a few persons were around him, yet his characteristic dying words were remembered. He said, ‘I only regret, that I have but one life to lose for my country.’ Some speculation exists that Hale might have been repeating or paraphrasing lines from Joseph Addison 's play Cato, Act IV, Scene IV: How beautiful is death when earned by virtue. Who would not be that youth?

What pity is it that we can die but once to serve our country. See George Dudley Seymour, Captain Nathan Hale, Major John Palsgrave Wyllys, A Digressive History, (1933), p. 39. Another early variant of his last words exists, as reported in the Independent Chronicle and the Universal Advertiser (17 May 1781): I am so satisfied with the cause in which I have engaged, that my only regret is, that I have not more lives than one to offer in its service. The most noble fate a man can endure is to place his own mortal body between his loved home and the war's desolation. Robert A. Heinlein , Starship Troopers . Gentlemen may cry, Peace, peace! But there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God!

I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death! Patrick Henry , Give me liberty or give me death! (1775). I hate patriotism. I can’t stand it, man — makes me fuckin’ sick. It’s a round world last time I checked. Bill Hicks I was over in Australia, and everyone's like: "Are you proud to be an American?" And I was like, "Um, I don't know, I didn't have a lot to do with it. You know, my parents fucked there, that's about all."- Bill Hicks The Protestant way of reconciling the commandments of Christ with those human activities that appealed to them was to declare any reconciliation to be impossible. … We must love our enemies. But whether this means burning the heretic and the witch, sending children to work before they can read, making bombs and blessing them, or whether it means the opposite, each believer has to decide for himself without even suspecting what the true will of God might be. A guiding light, though a deceptive one, is provided by the interest of the fatherland, of which there is little mention in the Gospels.

In the last few centuries, an incomparably greater number of believers have staked their lives for their country than for the forbidden love of its enemies. The idealists from Fichte to Hegel have also taken an active part in this development. In Europe, faith in God has now become faith in one’s own people. The motto, “Right or wrong, my country,” together with the tolerance of other religions with similar views, takes us back into that ancient world from which the primitive Christians had turned away. Max Horkheimer , “Theism and Atheism” (1963), in Critique of Instrumental Reason (1974). I have written for all, with a profound love for my own country, but without being engrossed by France more than by any other nation. In proportion as I advance in life, I grow more simple, and I become more and more patriotic for humanity. Victor Hugo , in a letter To M. Daelli, publisher of the Italian translation of Les Misérables (18 October 1862). Patriotism varies, from a noble devotion to a moral lunacy.

William Ralph Inge , in "Our Present Discontents" (August 1919) in Outspoken Essays (1919), p. 2. Who fears to speak of Ninety-eight? Who blushes at the name? When cowards mock the patriot's fate, Who hangs his head for shame? John K. Ingram , The Dublin Nation (April 1, 1843), Volume II, p. 339. Our [[Union (American Civil War)|Union: It must be preserved. Andrew Jackson , toast at a Jefferson Day dinner (April 13, 1830). Marquis James, Andrew Jackson: Portrait of a President (1937), p. 235. The account by James emphasizes the shocked reaction of Jackson's vice president, John C. Calhoun, to this toast, since it was clear he had lost Jackson's support of the Southern cause of nullification. When Calhoun's turn came, his toast was: "The Union, next to our liberty, most dear. May we all remember that it can only be preserved by respecting the rights of the States and by distributing equally the benefits and burdens of the Union" (pp.

235–36). According to Martin Van Buren, Autobiography (1920, reprinted 1973), vol. 2, p. 415, at the urging of General Hayne, Jackson altered his toast to "Our Federal Union" before it was given to the newspapers, and it was reported in this form in many sources including James Parton, Life of Andrew Jackson (1860), vol. 3, p. 283, and Thomas Hart Benton, Thirty Years View (1854, reprinted 1883), vol. 1, p. 148. Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel. Samuel Johnson , reported in James Boswell , Life of Samuel Johnson (1775). The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure. Thomas Jefferson Letter to William Stephens Smith (13 November 1787), quoted in Padover's Jefferson On Democracy.

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty. John F. Kennedy , Inaugural Address, (20 January 1961). And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. John F. Kennedy , Inaugural Address, (20 January 1961). Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel. Samuel Johnson , statement (7 April 1775), as quoted in Life of Samuel Johnson (1791) by James Boswell , p.

253; Boswell's full mention of this statement reads: Patriotism having become one of our topicks, Johnson suddenly uttered, in a strong determined tone, an apophthegm, at which many will start: "Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel." But let it be considered, that he did not mean a real and generous love of our country, but that pretended patriotism which so many, in all ages and countries, have made a cloak of self-interest. All should unite in honest efforts to obliterate the effects of war, and to restore the blessings of peace. They should remain, if possible, in the country; promote harmony and good feeling; qualify themselves to vote; and elect to the State and general Legislatures wise and patriotic men, who will devote their abilities to the interests of the country, and the healing of all dissensions. I have invariably recommended this course since the cessation of hostilities, and have endeavored to practice it myself. Robert E. Lee , in a letter to former Virginia governor John Letcher (28 August 1865), as quoted in Personal Reminiscences, Anecdotes, and Letters of Gen. Robert E.

Lee (1875) by John William Jones, p. 203. True patriotism sometimes requires of men to act exactly contrary, at one period, to that which it does at another, and the motive which impels them — the desire to do right — is precisely the same. Robert E. Lee , in a letter to General P. G. T. Beauregard (3 October 1865). In uniform patriotism can salute one flag only, embrace but the first circle of life—one's own land and tribe. In war that is necessary, in peace it is not enough. Bill Moyers , "At Large", speech at the Peace Corps twenty-fifth anniversary memorial service (21 September 1986), published in Moyers on Democracy (2008), p. 26. By 'nationalism'... I mean the habit of identifying oneself with a single nation or other unit, placing it beyond good and evil and recognising no other duty than that of advancing its interests. Nationalism is not to be confused with patriotism.

Both words are normally used in so vague a way that any definition is liable to be challenged, but one must draw a distinction between them, since two different and even opposing ideas are involved. By 'patriotism' I mean devotion to a particular place and a particular way of life, which one believes to be the best in the world but has no wish to force on other people. Patriotism is of its nature defensive, both militarily and culturally. Nationalism, on the other hand, is inseparable from the desire for power. The abiding purpose of every nationalist is to secure more power and more prestige, not for himself but for the nation or other unit in which he has chosen to sink his own individuality. George Orwell , Essay: Notes on Nationalism (1945). No one is patriotic about taxes. George Orwell , Orwell Diaries 1938-1942, (9 August 40) . THESE are the times that try men's souls .

The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country ; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman Thomas Paine , The American Crisis (1776 - 1783) I would sooner receive injustice in the Queen's courts than justice in a foreign court. I hold that man or woman to be a scoundrel who goes abroad to a foreign court to have the judgments of the Queen's courts overturned, the actions of her Government countermanded or the legislation of Parliament struck down. Enoch Powell , Speech in Ilford (13 March 1982), from Simon Heffer, Like the Roman. The Life of Enoch Powell (Phoenix, 1999), p. 853. National pride is to countries what self-respect is to individuals: a necessary condition for self-improvement. Richard Rorty - Achieving Our Country : Leftist Thought in Twentieth Century America. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1998 [Patriotism is the] willingness to kill and be killed for trivial reasons. Bertrand Russell , Sceptical Essays (1928), Ch.

13: Freedom in Society. Patriots always talk of dying for their country, and never of killing for their country. Bertrand Russell , Has Man a Future? (1962). A man's feet should be planted in his country, but his eyes should survey the world. Patriotism, when it wants to make itself felt in the domain of learning, is a dirty fellow who should be thrown out of doors. Arthur Schopenhauer , Parerga and Paralipomena (1851) Counsels and Maxims Vol. 2, Ch. 21, § 255. Patriotism is, fundamentally, a conviction that a particular country is the best in the world because you were born in it. George Bernard Shaw in The World (15 November 1893). Cited in Not Bloody Likely!: And Other Quotations from Bernard Shaw (1996), p.

142 That is a true sentiment which makes us feel that we do not love our country less, but more, because we have laid up in our minds the knowledge of other lands and other institutions and other races, and have had enkindled afresh within us the instinct of a common humanity, and of the universal beneficence of the Creator. Arthur Penrhyn Stanley , reported in Josiah Hotchkiss Gilbert, Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), p. 442. What do we mean by patriotism in the context of our times? … A patriotism that puts country ahead of self; a patriotism which is not short, frenzied outbursts of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime. Adlai Stevenson , speech in New York City (27 August 1952), quoted in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations (1955), Boston: Little, Brown and Co., p. 986.

Patriotism … for rulers is nothing else than a tool for achieving their power-hungry and money-hungry goals, and for the ruled it means renouncing their human dignity, reason, conscience, and slavish submission to those in power. … Patriotism is slavery. Leo Tolstoy , Patriotism and Christianity (1894). Those attacks upon language and religion in Poland, the Baltic provinces, Alsace, Bohemia, upon the Jews in Russia, in every place that such acts of violence occur—in what name have they been, and are they, perpetrated? In none other than the name of that patriotism which you defend. Ask our savage Russifiers of Poland and the Baltic provinces, ask the persecutors of the Jews, why they act thus. They will tell you it is in defence of their native religion and language; they will tell you that if they do not act thus, their religion and language will suffer—the Russians will be Polonised, Teutonised, Judaised. Leo Tolstoy, Patriotism and Christianity, A Reply to Criticisms . If patriotism is good, then Christianity, which gives peace, is an idle dream, and the sooner this teaching is eradicated, the better.

But if Christianity really gives peace, and if we really want peace, then patriotism is a leftover from barbarous times, which must not only not be evoked and taught, as we now do, but which must be eradicated by all means of preaching, persuasion, contempt, and ridicule. If Christianity is the truth, and if we wish to live in peace, then we must not only have no sympathy for the power of our country, but must even rejoice in its weakening and contribute to it. Leo Tolstoy, Patriotism or Peace . I have already several times expressed the thought that in our day the feeling of patriotism is an unnatural, irrational, and harmful feeling, and a cause of a great part of the ills from which mankind is suffering, and that, consequently, this feeling – should not be cultivated, as is now being done, but should, on the contrary, be suppressed and eradicated by all means available to rational men.

Yet, strange to say – though it is undeniable that the universal armaments and destructive wars which are ruining the peoples result from that one feeling – all my arguments showing the backwardness, anachronism, and harmfulness of patriotism have been met, and are still met, either by silence, by intentional misinterpretation, or by a strange unvarying reply to the effect that only bad patriotism (Jingoism or Chauvinism) is evil, but that real good patriotism is a very elevated moral feeling, to condemn which is not only irrational but wicked. What this real, good patriotism consists in, we are never told; or, if anything is said about it, instead of explanation we get declamatory, inflated phrases, or, finally, some other conception is substituted for patriotism – something which has nothing in common with the patriotism we all know, and from the results of which we all suffer so severely. Leo Tolstoy, Patriotism and Government . It will be said, "Patriotism has welded mankind into states, and maintains the unity of states." But men are now united in states; that work is done; why now maintain exclusive devotion to one's own state, when this produces terrible evils for all states and nations?

For this same patriotism which welded mankind into states is now destroying those same states. If there were but one patriotism say of the English only then it were possible to regard that as conciliatory, or beneficent. But when, as now, there is American patriotism, English, German, French, Russian, all opposed to one another, in this event, patriotism no longer unites, but disunites. In the beginning of a change, the patriot is a scarce man, and brave and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot. Mark Twain , as quoted in Mark Twain's Notebook (1935) edited by Albert Bigelow Paine , p. 394. The modern patriotism, the true patriotism, the only rational patriotism is loyalty to the nation all the time, loyalty to the government when it deserves it. Mark Twain , from the essay "The Czar's soliloquy" (1905), cited in The Wit and Wisdom of Mark Twain by Alex Ayres (1987), p. 176 Gentlemen have talked a great deal of patriotism. A venerable word, when duly practised.

But I am sorry to say that of late it has been so much hackneyed about that it is in danger of falling into disgrace. The very idea of true patriotism is lost, and the term has been prostituted to the very worst of purposes. Robert Walpole , Speech Against his Removal from Office given to the House of Commons (1741). Citizens by birth or choice, of a common country, that country has a right to concentrate your affections. The name of AMERICAN, which belongs to you, in your national capacity, must always exalt the just pride of Patriotism, more than any appellation derived from local discriminations. George Washington , farewell address (September 19, 1796); in John C. Fitzpatrick, ed., The Writings of George Washington (1940), vol. 35, p. 219–20. Our patriotism comes straight from the Romans. This is why French children are encouraged to seek inspiration for it in Corneille. It is a pagan virtue, if these two words are compatible. The word pagan, when applied to Rome, early possesses the significance charged with horror which the early Christian controversialists gave it.

The Romans really were an atheistic and idolatrous people; not idolatrous with regard to images made of stone or bronze, but idolatrous with regard to themselves. It is this idolatry of self which they have bequeathed to us in the form of patriotism. S. J. Arnold , Death of Nelson. From distant climes, o'er wide-spread seas we come, Though not with much éclat or beat of drum; True patriots all; for be it understood We left our country for our country's good. No private views disgraced our generous zeal, What urged our travels was our country's weal. George Barrington , prologue for the Opening of the Playhouse at Sydney, New South Wales, Jan. 16, 1796. Dr. Young's Revenge was played by convicts. Be Briton still to Britain true, Among oursel's united; For never but by British hands Maun British wrangs be righted. Again to the battle, Achaians! Our hearts bid the tyrants defiance! Our land, the first garden of liberty's tree— It has been, and shall yet be, the land of the free. Thomas Campbell , Song of the Greeks.

God save our gracious king, Long live our noble king, God save the king. Henry Carey , God Save the King. I realize that patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred toward any one. Edith Cavell . Quoted by the Newspapers as her last words before she was shot to death by the Germans in Brussels, Oct. 12, 1915. "My country, right or wrong," is a thing that no patriot would think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying, "My mother, drunk or sober." We join ourselves to no party that does not carry the flag and I keep step to the music of the Union. Rufus Choate , Letter to a Worcester Whig Convention. Oct. 1, 1855. Patria est communis omnium parens. Our country is the common parent of all. Cicero , Orationes in Catilinam. I. 7. I have heard something said about allegiance to the South: I know no South, no North, no East, no West, to which I owe any allegiance. Henry Clay , in the U.S. Senate. (1848).

I hope to find my country in the right: however I will stand by her, right or wrong. John J. Crittenden , in Congress, when President Polk sent a message after the defeat of the Mexican General Arista by General Taylor. May, 1846. Our country! In her intercourse with foreign nations, may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong. Stephen Decatur , toast given at Norfolk, April, 1816. See Mackenzie's Life of Stephen Decatur, Chapter XIV. I wish I was in de land ob cotton, Ole times dar am not forgotten, Look-a-way! Look-a-way! Look-a-way, Dixie Land! * * * * * Den I wish I was in Dixie, Hooray! Hooray! In Dixie Land I'll take my stand To lib and die in Dixie. Daniel D. Emmett , Dixie Land. See account in Century, Aug., 1887. A Southern version was written by Albert Pike. 'Twas for the good of my country that I should be abroad. Anything for the good of one's country—I'm a Roman for that.

George Farquhar , The Beaux' Stratagem, Act III, scene 2, line 89. Liberté, égalité, fraternité. And bold and hard adventures t' undertake, Leaving his country for his country's sake. Charles Fitzgeffrey , Life and Death of Sir Francis Drake (1600), Stanza 213. Our country is the world—our countrymen are all mankind. William Lloyd Garrison , Motto of the Liberator, 1837–1839. "My country" originally—later changed to "Our country". Such is the patriot's boast, where'er we roam, His first best country ever is at home. Oliver Goldsmith , The Traveler, line 73. Strike—for your altars and your fires; Strike—for the green graves of your sires; God—and your native land! And have they fixed the where, and when? And shall Trelawny die? Here's thirty thousand Cornish men Will know the reason why! Robert Stephen Hawker , Song of the Western Men. Mr.

Hawker asserts that he wrote the ballad in 1825, all save the chorus and the last two lines, which since the imprisonment by James II, 1688, of the seven Bishops, have been popular throughout Cornwall. (Trelawny was Bishop of Bristol.) First appearance in the Royal Devonport Telegram and Plymouth Chronicle, Sept. 2, 1826. Story of the ballad in Macaulay's History of England. Footnote for Hawker. He serves his party best who serves the country best. Rutherford B. Hayes , Inaugural Address (March 5, 1877). I am not a Virginian but an American. Patrick Henry , in the Continental Congress (Sept. 5, 1774). One flag, one land, one heart, one hand, One Nation evermore! Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. , Voyage of the Good Ship Union, Poems of the Class of '29. He serves me most who serves his country best. Homer , The Iliad, Book X, line 206. Pope's translation. And for our country 'tis a bliss to die.

Homer , The Iliad, Book XV, line 583. Pope's translation. That man is little to be envied, whose patriotism would not gain force upon the plain of Marathon, or whose piety would not grow warmer among the ruins of Iona. Samuel Johnson , A Journey to the Western Islands, Inch Kenneth. Pater patriæ. Father of his country. Juvenal , Satire VIII, 244. Title bestowed on Cicero (B.C. 64) after his consulship, "a mark of distinction which none ever gained before." Plutarch—Life of Cicero. Pliny, Book VII, calls Cicero "Parens patriæ." Title conferred on Peter the Great by the Russian Senate. (1721). See Post-Boy, Dec. 28–30, 1721. Also applied to Augustus Cæsar and Marius. Je meurs content, je meurs pour la liberté de mon pays. I die content, I die for the liberty of my country. Attributed to Le Pelletier, also to Marshal Lannes.

The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature. Abraham Lincoln , Inaugural Address (March 4, 1861). Is it an offence, is it a mistake, is it a crime to take a hopeful view of the prospects of your own country? Why should it be? Why should patriotism and pessimism be identical? Hope is the mainspring of patriotism. D. Lloyd George , in the House of Commons (Oct. 30, 1919). And how can man die better Than facing fearful odds, For the ashes of his fathers And the temples of his gods? 'Twere sweet to sink in death for Truth and Freedom! Yes, who would hesitate, for who could bear The living degradation we may know If we do dread death for a sacred cause? Terence McSwiney , lines written when a boy. In the Nation (Nov. 3, 1920).

Our spirit is … to show ourselves eager to work for, and if need be, to die for the Irish Republic. Facing our enemy we must declare an attitude simply…. We ask for no mercy and we will make no compromise. Terence McSwiney , Lord Mayor of Cork. From a document in his possession when he was sentenced, in August, 1920. Vox diversa sonat: populorum est vox tamen una, Cum verus PATRIÆ diceris esse PATER. There are many different voices and languages; but there is but one voice of the peoples when you are declared to be the true "Father of your country." Martial , De Spectaculis, III. 11. We, that would be known The father of our people, in our study And vigilance for their safety, must, not change Their ploughshares into swords, and force them from The secure shade of their own vines, to be Scorched with the flames of war. Philip Massinger , The Maid of Honour, Act I. 1. Nescio qua natale solum dulcedine captos Ducit, et immemores non sinit esse sui.

Our native land charms us with inexpressible sweetness, and never allows us to forget that we belong to it. Ovid , Epistolæ Ex Ponto, I. 3. 35. Omne solum forti patria est. The whole earth is the brave man's country. Ovid , Fasti, I. 501. Patria est, ubicunque est bene. Our country is wherever we are well off. Pacuvius , quoted by Cicero , Tusculan. Disputations. V. 37. Aristophanes. Plautus. Euripides , Fragmenta Incerta. Phipiskus—Dion Cassius. I. 171. My country is the world, and my religion is to do good. Thomas Paine , Rights of Man, Chapter V. They know no country, own no lord, Their home the camp, their law the sword. Free rendering of passage in Silvio Pellico's Enfernio de Messina, Act V, scene 2. Millions for defence, but not one cent for tribute. Attributed to Charles C. Pinckney when Ambassador to the French Republic (1796). Denied by him.

Said to have been "Not a penny—not a sixpence." Attributed also to Robert Goodloe Harper, of South Carolina. "I have ten thousand for defense, but none to surrender; if you want our weapons, come and get them." The response of an ancient General. If I were an American, as I am on Englishman, while a foreign troop was landed in my country I never would lay down my arms, never! never! never! William Pitt (Earl of Chatham), speech (Nov. 18, 1777). Socrates said he was not an Athenian or a Greek, but a citizen of the world. Patria est ubicumque vir fortis sedem elegerit. A brave man's country is wherever he chooses his abode. Quintus Curtius Rufus , De Rebus Gestis Alexandri Magni, VI, 4, 13. "patriotism," i.e., a willingness to kill and be killed for trivial reasons. Bertrand Russell , Sceptical Essays (1928) Ch. 13: Freedom in Society. Patriots always talk of dying for their country, and never of killing for their country.

Bertrand Russell , Has Man a Future? (1962), p. 78. Our country, right or wrong! When right, to be kept right; when wrong, to be put right! Carl Schurz , speech in U.S. Senate (1872). Where's the coward that would not dare To fight for such a land? Walter Scott , Marmion (1808), Canto IV, Stanza 30. Servare cives, major est virtus patriæ patri. To preserve the life of citizens, is the greatest virtue in the father of his country. Had I a dozen sons,—each in my love alike, * * * I had rather have eleven die nobly for their country, than one voluptuously surfeit out of action. William Shakespeare , Coriolanus (c. 1607-08), Act I, scene 3, line 24. I do love My country's good with a respect more tender, More holy and profound, than mine own life. William Shakespeare , Coriolanus (c. 1607-08), Act III, scene 3, line 111.

Where liberty is, there is my country. Algernon Sidney 's motto. He held it safer to be of the religion of the King or Queen that were in being, for he knew that he came raw into the world, and accounted it no point of wisdom to be broiled out of it. John Taylor , The Old, Old, Very Old Man. (Parr). A saviour of the silver-coasted isle. Alfred Tennyson , Ode on Death of Duke of Wellington, Part VI. Put none but Americans on guard tonight. Attributed to George Washington . The only basis for this order seems to be found in Washington's circular letter to regimental commanders, dated April 30, 1777, regarding recruits for his body guard. "You will therefore send me none but natives." A few months before, Thomas Hickey, a deserter from the British army, had tried to poison Washington, had been convicted and hanged. Hands across the sea, Byron Webber , Hands Across the Sea. Let our object be, our country, our whole country, and nothing but our country.

Daniel Webster , address at the Laying of the Corner-Stone of the Bunker Hill Monument (June 17, 1825). Thank God, I—I also—am an American! Daniel Webster , Completion of Bunker Hill Monument (June 17, 1843). Sink or swim, live or die, survive or perish, I give my hand and heart to this vote. Daniel Webster , Eulogy on Adams and Jefferson. I was born an American; I live an American; I shall die an American! Daniel Webster , speech (July 17, 1850). Patriotism has become a mere national self assertion, a sentimentality of flag-cheering with no constructive duties. H. G. Wells , Future in America. The lines of red are lines of blood, nobly and unselfishly shed by men who loved the liberty of their fellowmen more than they loved their own lives and fortunes. God forbid that we should have to use the blood of America to freshen the color of the flag. But if it should ever be necessary, that flag will be colored once more, and in being colored will be glorified and purified.

Woodrow Wilson , Flag Day Speech (May 7, 1915). Our country—whether bounded by the St. John's and the Sabine, or however otherwise bounded or described, and be the measurements more or less;—still our country, to be cherished in all our hearts, and to be defended by all our hands. Robert C. Winthrop , toast at Faneuil Hall (July 4, 1845). "Our country, however bounded." Toast founded on the speech of Winthrop. There are no points of the compass on the chart of true patriotism. Robert C. Winthrop , letter to Boston Commercial Club (12 June 1879). Our land is the dearer for our sacrifices. The blood of our martyrs sanctifies and enriches it. Their spirit passes into thousands of hearts. How costly is the progress of the race. It is only by the giving of life that we can have life. Rev. E. J. Young , Lesson of the Hour, in Magazine of History, Extra. No. 43. Originally pub. in Monthly Religious Mag., Boston (May, 1865). America is the crucible of God.

It is the melting pot where all the races are fusing and reforming … these are the fires of God you've come to…. Into the crucible with you all. God is making the American. Misattributed[ edit ] Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind. And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded by patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar. Author unknown, this is often misattributed to Julius Caesar and William Shakespeare , but the earliest located occurrences of this thus far are from the year 2000. America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves. Misattributed to Abraham Lincoln .

NURSE CAVELL – WHEN PATRIOTISM IS NOT ENOUGH | Stories Of London ( Biot , discovered optical activity ; Pasteur, separated enantiomers ; van’t Hoff (and Le Bel) who proposed the tetrahedral carbon atom ; Fischer , who identified 16 aldohexoses ; & Prelog ) Bottom Right: An example of a compound with the same formula but with two distinct forms The importance of this concept is clearly illustrated with the two structural forms of the drug Thalidomide : although both forms are chemically identical, the arrangement of the atoms in space allows one form to appear when taken by pregnant women, while causing the second form to induce birth defects in the fetus (foetus). Tragically when the form was given to human subjects, it was converted into a mixture of the two forms and so proved to be also unsafe. Thalidomide – Structure & Capsules And so it is perhaps not surprising that my mother was a great admirer of those involved in scientific and medical research and their applications. And one of the people that she most admired was Nurse Cavell.

——oooOOOooo—— WHEN PATRIOTISM IS NOT ENOUGH PART TWO Edith Louisa Cavell was born in 1865 in the village of Swardeston, near Norwich where her father was a vicar. After being employed as a governess both in England and Belgium, she entered training to be a nurse at the Royal London Hospital (1900-1905) under the direction of Matron Eva Luckes. In 1907, she became the matron of L’École Belge d’Infirmières Diplômées, a newly established nursing school in Brussels and in 1908 she launched the nursing journal, L’Infirmiere. Once the First World War was declared in 1914, the nursing school and associated clinics were commandeered by the Red Cross . Edith Cavel as Nurse (left, Graduation from Nursing School), Sister (middle) and Matron (right) Once the German occupation of Brussels began in November 1914, Nurse Cavell began sheltering British troops and helping them escape to The Netherlands. This service was extended to allied troops and to Belgian and French boys of military age.

The German authorities became suspicious of her activities, which was fueled by her outspoken opinions and led to her arrest in August 1915 and being charged with the harbouring of Allied soldiers. According to records, she admitted to helping 60 English and 15 French soldiers along with some 100 French and Belgians of military age to escape and was prosecuted for these actions at her court-martial. Nurse Cavell was found guilty of the charges laid against her. According to German Military Code, which was applicable to both Germans and foreigners in times of war, guilt of treason was to be punished by death. She is well known for making the statement, Patriotism is not enough, I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone and for her strong Christian ideals. Her beliefs led her to help anyone in need, which included both German and Allied soldiers. She is also known for stating, I can’t stop while there are lives to be saved.

Although Baron von der Lancken, the German civil governor at the time, stated that Nurse Cavell should be pardoned because of her complete honesty and because she had helped save so many lives including both German and Allied, General von Sauberzweig, the military governor of Brussels, ordered the immediate execution of the death penalty. Baron, General von Sauberzweig Once Nurse Cavell was sentenced to death, the British Foreign Office said that it was powerless to intervene on her behalf. However, the Americans who were not at present at war with Germany tried to apply diplomatic pressure on her behalf. In addition, not all German officials were in favour of her execution since she had been known to help German soldiers as well. Despite these and the efforts of others, Nurse Cavell was executed on the 12th October, 1915, at 6 o’clock in the morning at Tir National Shooting Range in Schaerbeek by a German firing squad. Her last words to the prison chaplain were: Ask Father Gahan to tell my loved ones later that my soul, as I believe, is safe, and that I am glad to die for my country.

Her execution was greeted by condemnation throughout the world along with extensive press coverage. Following the execution a group of Belgian women buried Nurse Cavell in a grave adjacent to St. Gilles Prison. Once the war ended, her body was returned to England and a memorial service was held at Westminster Abbey. After this, it was then transported to Norwich and finally to Life’s Green where she was laid to rest. Left: The wagon that transported Nurse Cavell remains; Right: Arrival at Westminster Abbey Nurse Cavell is remembered by the memorials built in her memory throughout the world. In addition there are numerous medical and nursing facilities named in her honour including a wing of Homerton Hospital in Hackney and the School of Nursing at the University of East Anglia in Norwich. There are also a number of streets, schools, gardens and bridges named in her honour in Britain and other countries. It is said that Edith Piaf , the famed singer, was named after her and in fact it is believed that Nurse Cavell is responsible for the name Edith becoming popular in France. ——oooOOOooo—— Since my mother admired Nurse Cavell, it is not surprising that she liked to visit her memorial at St.

Martin’s Place, close to the North-East corner of Trafalgar Square. Whenever we went to the West End, at some time we seemed to find ourselves standing in front of the memorial. My mother would stop and linger there for a while. She always gave me the impression that each time she came across the memorial it was as if it was for the first time. At each visit, she used to stop, look at the plinth and mouth the words of the inscription and shake her head and complain bitterly about those that had Nurse Cavell shot. Next, she mentioned her half-brother, George whom she loved very much and who had been killed in the Second World War. Her eyes always filled with tears as she remembered him. Once she wiped them away, she sighed deeply and turned to the statue and made the same comment regarding Nurse Cavell’s height. When I was young, I had the habit of reminding my mother that she followed this routine each time she came to the memorial. She always denied it and told me that I was too smart for my own good. As I got older, I developed more compassion and understanding, as well as the habit of standing beside her and shaking my head in agreeing with her feelings.

In the meantime, my father was disappearing in the distance. He had the habit of walking a head and seemed oblivious most of the time that he had left home with us. Eventually it must have dawned on him that he had a wife and son and would stop and smoke a cigarette while he waited for us to catch up. And once we did, he grumbled for a while telling us how slow we were and then take off again. ——oooOOOooo—— Unveiling of the Memorial in 1920 The Nurse Cavell Memorial was one of the first of such Memorials that I remember seeing in London as a child. Naturally I was very impressed and remembered the austerity associated with the lady. I remember my mother telling who the lady was and how she had been a heroine and had been shot for helping soldiers escape. I was greatly affected by what I was told. Throughout my childhood, I visited the memorial numerous times and it became a great favourite of mine along with The Gladstone Memorial at the Aldwych . The Gladstone Memorial A point aside, I remember the first time that I saw The Gladstone Memorial. I was being taken to the Stoll Theatre in Kingsway .

I was being taken to my first West End theatre and about to see the original London production of Oklahoma! I was especially taken with the smaller statues around the central one of Gladstone and really liked the curved sword held by one of the figures who was about to kill a snake. The Nurse Cavell Memorial was the work of Sir George Frampton R.A., P.R.B.S. (1860-1928) and is of white marble and was unveiled in 1920. I have read that it is 7.6 metres high and of grey granite. The statue of Nurse Cavell stands on a plinth before a cross in the nursing uniform that she wore as she stood before the firing squad at her execution. The representation of Nurse Cavell shows her exactly as I believe she was: serene, stoic and without fear. Who could not but admire her? A woman and child appears at the top of the cross and symbolizes Humanity and in particular to symbolise the allies coming to the aid of Belgium during the First World War. The memorial was not well received at the time of its unveiling. It differed greatly from Sir George’s other works.

The major criticism was not of the figure of Nurse Cavell, but that it was dwarfed by the mass of granite behind it. In addition, the figures representing Humanity did not escape critique. Many found such criticism to be unwarranted especially since Sir George did not charge for his work and time. ——oooOOOooo—— At the end of the First World War, Nurse Cavell’s remains were brought to London for a state funeral at Westminster Abbey. The railway van that carried that transported her remains from Dover to London is maintained as a memorial to her and is open for viewing at Bodiam Railway Station in East Sussex. Following the state funeral, her remains were taken to Norwich and finally laid to rest on the 19th May, 1919 on the east side of Norwich Cathedral where a graveside service is held in remembrance each October. One of the first memorials to Nurse Cavell was by Henry Alfred Pegrmin , which is found in the grounds of Norwich Cathedral. It was unveiled by Queen Alexandra in October 1918. Norwich is an interesting city with a long history. I lived there at one time and used to enjoy going to the cathedral and visiting Nurse Cavell’s grave and memorial.

What I always liked about Nurse Cavell grave was its simplicity, which is where its charm and grace lies. Norwich Cathedral is a beautiful structure with fine cloisters and is constructed from flint and mortar and faced with a Caen limestone . Building began in 1096 and was completed in 1145 and the original wooden Norman tower can still be seen with the stone spire being erected in 1480. The cloisters is the second largest in England, those of Salisbury Cathedral being the largest. Unfortunately the cathedral was partially in ruins in the early 17th century and in 1643 an angry Puritan mob invaded the building and destroyed all everything associated with the Catholic Church. During the Civil War , the cathedral was left to decay and was abandoned for almost twenty years. It was not until after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 that plans began to be put together to return the cathedral to its former glory. Norwich is one of only three English cathedrals to lack a ring of bells, the others being Salisbury and Ely Cathedrals . I enjoyed exploring the cathedral and especially liked to sit and admire the remarkable fan-vaulted ceiling.

I used to walk around the cloisters and always spent some time at the grave of Nurse Cavell before making my way out into the cathedral grounds. The cathedral grounds house a number of fine buildings, some of which were covered with creeper that were especially colourful during the autumn months. The cathedral also has a fine organ and I remember attending a number of recitals during my time in Norwich. The area surrounding the cathedral has great charm. Elm Hill is especially delightful. It is a winding cobbled street filled with the usual bookshops, curio establishments and tea rooms to attract visitors. However, at certain times of the year and at particular times of the day, the area is relatively free of people and it was at such times that I liked to walk here and allow my information to run wild. Elm Hill, named for the Elm Trees that grew there Edith Cavell - Wikiquote Edith Cavell Jump to: navigation , search I have no fear nor shrinking; I have seen death so often that it is not strange or fearful to me. Patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards any one.

Edith Louisa Cavell ( 4 December 1865 – 12 October 1915 ) was a British nurse, humanitarian and spy. She is celebrated for helping some 200 Allied soldiers escape from German-occupied Belgium during World War I, for which she was arrested. She was court-martialled, found guilty of treason and executed. This People article is a stub . You can help Wikiquote by expanding it . Contents Quotes[ edit ] I can’t stop while there are lives to be saved . As quoted in "Edith Cavell" by Helen Judson in The American Journal of Nursing (July 1941), p. 871 Someday, somehow, I am going to do something useful, something for people . They are, most of them, so helpless, so hurt and so unhappy. As quoted in The Economist (15 October 2010), p. 107 Last statements (1915)[ edit ] Last statements prior to her execution (11 October 1915), as reported in an account by Reverend H. Stirling Gahan, in Source Records of the Great War (1923), edited by Charles F.

Horne, Vol. III I have no fear nor shrinking; I have seen death so often that it is not strange or fearful to me. I thank God for this ten weeks' quiet before the end ... Life has always been hurried and full of difficulty... This time of rest has been a great mercy . They have all been very kind to me here. But this I would say, standing as I do in view of God and eternity, I realize that patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone. Though said the night before her execution this statement has often been presented as having been her last. Variants of these words have sometimes been misattributed to Florence Nightingale . "Patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone." is inscribed beneath her statue at St. Martin's Place in London. Quotes about Cavell[ edit ] It was a pity that Miss Cavell had to be executed, but it was necessary. She was judged justly. We hope it will not be necessary to have any more executions. German Secretary for Foreign Affairs Arthur Zimmermann , as quoted in Source Records of the Great War (1923), edited by Charles F. Horne, Vol.

III Who was Edith Cavell? - History's HEROES from E2BN Who was she? Things you may not know about Edith Cavell Edith Cavell was the daughter of a vicar but she thought her father's sermons were boring. More As a young girl, she was far from being a little saint; however it is clear from some of her last words that, as an adult, she held fast to her Christian faith. Edith's father was something of a Puritan and would want to keep a strict Sabbath (Sunday). More There was no play on a Sunday; however, there was laughter in the family. Edith's father was not dour and could easily be tempted to disguise himself as a bear and cause the Cavell children to shriek with delight. The family were quite poor as Frederick Cavell had used most of his money building the vicarage at his own expense. More Nevertheless, they were concerned to share what they had with their poorer parishioners. Sunday lunch was a great family affair and whatever was cut from the Sunday joint, an equal amount was taken out to hungry cottagers nearby. When Edith was a girl, one of her favourite winter pastimes was ice skating.

More There was a moat behind the church where the Cavell sisters and brother would skate when it froze - and Edith had also been seen skating down by the ford at Intwood. As a child she helped establish a church room for a Sunday School. More Edith wrote to the bishop about the need for a church room to house the growing Sunday School for the children of the village. He agreed to help if the village raised some of the money. Edith and her sister painted and sold cards raising some £300 - a large sum in those days. The bishop kept his promise and the church room was built. Edith taught in the Sunday School there. Edith was quite an accomplished artist. More She loved drawing and painting the natural things around her: flowers, plants, birds and even other people enjoying the countryside. She would sometimes give one of her pictures as a gift to a villager for a special occasion. As a young woman, she once danced until her feet bled. More Dancing was a favourite pastime of Edith's. On this occasion she ruined her new shoes but apparently cured her chilblains! She is thought to have had a romantic fondness for her second cousin, Eddie.

More Unfortunately, he had a nervous condition which he had inherited and which he did not think he ought to pass on by marrying and having children. Edith did not forget him however, and on the day she was executed, she wrote in her copy of 'The Imitation of Christ' "With love to E.D. Cavell". Edith was described by her nursing teachers as unpunctual and even a little lazy but when placed in charge of others she became a strict matron! More When she became Matron 'L'Ecole d'Infirmière Diplômées' in Belgium, she kept a watch beside her at breakfast, and any trainee who arrived more than two minutes late had to do two more hours' work. She insisted the dusting should be done by 10.00 and would wipe her finger along the iron bedsteads to check for dust. She was fond of animals and nature. More In Belgium she had two dogs, called Don and Jack. Edith had a great respect and love of nature, surrounding herself with animals and plants. She was fascinated with flowers and both collected and drew them. Edith was weeding when she heard that World War 1 had started.

More Edith was close to her mother and spent as much time in England with her as she could since her father had died. It was her mother's garden she was helping to weed when she heard the news. The password of the underground movement in Belgium that Edith worked with was 'Yorc'. More This was the name of the aristocrat family, who were organising the network, spelt backwards. This organisation lasted for almost a year. The risks were high and those involved knew they could be shot for harbouring allied soldiers. Edith carried out most of the work with the escaped soldiers herself as she did not want to implicate others. More She did this alongside her normal duties of matron. She also continued to do a lot of the jobs at night, to avoid unnecessary questions. At one time, Edith had 35 escapees in her establishment. Despite the shortage of food, Edith continued to feed the hospital's growing official list of patients, the staff and the rising numbers of escapees. She carried on with her regular duties of supervising her nurses, delivering regular lectures and managing costs. She sewed her diary into a cushion so it would not be found if the nursing school was searched.

More When the school was searched Edith remained calm as a soldier slipped out through the back garden; no incriminating papers were ever found. Edith was too thorough and she had even managed to keep her 'underground' activities from her nurses so as not to incriminate them. Edith was not arrested for espionage, as many people believed, but for treason. More The Americans argued that she could not be tried or executed for treason because as a British citizen she had no allegiance to Germany; however the American minister in Belgium was not allowed to attend the trial. The only evidence found against Edith at the hospital was one tatty postcard. More Although more than 200 troops had passed through the hospital, the only incriminating document the nurse had was a battered postcard, sent by an English soldier thanking her for helping him to reach home. Edith did not attempt to defend herself. More When in custody, she was questioned in French, but the session was minuted in German. Although her answers may have been misinterpreted she did not defend herself. Her defender was selected by the German military governor. A previous defender, who was chosen by her assistant, Elizabeth Wilkins, was rejected.

Her last words were that she was glad to die for her country. More Her final words spoken to the German Lutheran prison chaplain, Paul Le Seur, were, "Ask Father Gahan to tell my loved ones later on that my soul, as I believe, is safe, and that I am glad to die for my country." She did not want to be a martyr. More She said, "Don’t think of me like that, think of me as a nurse who tried to do her duty." Although the German action was justified according to the rule of war, it was a serious blunder. More She became an overnight heroine and martyr, and the Germans were universally described as "murdering monsters". Allied morale was strengthened and recruitment doubled for eight weeks after her death was announced. It may also have been instrumental in the Americans joining the war. Laurence Binyon, a famous English poet, wrote a poem about Edith shortly after her execution. More He called it simply 'Edith Cavell' and it begins "She was binding the wounds of her enemies when they came". Edith's body was carried from Dover to London in a passenger luggage wagon.

More This same wagon was used for carrying the body of the Unknown Soldier, some time later Edith could not be buried inside Norwich Cathedral. More Victorian public health legislation prevented burial inside cathedrals and other public places Edith Cavell in brief But this I would say, standing as I do in view of God and Eternity, I realise that patriotism is not enough, I must have no hatred or bitterness toward anyone. Edith Cavell was a vicar's daughter, an English matron of a teaching hospital and an influential pioneer of modern nursing in Belgium. When World War 1 broke out she was visiting her mother in England. She returned to Belgium as she felt her nursing skills would be needed more than ever and felt it was her duty to stay in the occupied country rather than return to the safety of England. Edith's hospital became a Red Cross hospital, and wounded soldiers of all nationalities were equally treated there. Her strong Christian beliefs motivated her to help all those in need, both German and Allied soldiers. She once said, "I can't stop while there are lives to be saved".

However, when some wounded British soldiers, who had been cut off from their comrades, arrived, Edith had to face a near-impossible dilemma: if she helped the soldiers she put at risk the neutrality of the Red Cross and would possibly endanger others working with her. If she refused to help them they would be in danger of being executed, along with any civilians who had harboured them. Edith decided to help them despite the risk to herself. "Had I not helped, they would have been shot", she later said. She then agreed to join a Belgian underground movement and helped more than 200 Allied soldiers to escape to neutral territory. When the network was betrayed, she was arrested, tried by a court martial, found guilty of treason and sentenced to death. The execution was carried out at dawn by a firing squad, on October 12th, 1915, in Brussels. Edith was still wearing her nurse's uniform. She immediately became a national heroine to the British and her death was used as propaganda against the Germans. However, Edith never wanted to be a martyr; to Edith the protection of hunted men was a Christian and humanitarian act for which she was prepared to face the consequences.

Just as importantly, she is also remembered for her forgiveness. On the eve of her execution she said, "I am thankful to have had these 10 weeks of quiet to get ready. Now I have had them and have been kindly treated here. I expected my sentence and I believe it was just. Standing as I do in view of God and Eternity, I realise that patriotism is not enough, I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone". Edith Cavell: "Patriotism Is Not Enough" Edith Cavell: "Patriotism Is Not Enough" Go to permalink On this day in 1915, British nurse Edith Cavell was executed for her role in helping over 200 Allied soldiers escape to the Netherlands from Belgium during World War 1. Ms. Cavell, who was stationed at the Berkendael Institute, a nursing school that was converted to a Red Cross military hospital once the Great War broke out, was captured after several Allied soldiers were reported missing from the hospital. After roughly 10 weeks in solitary confinement, and despite the protestations of the United States government, who warned Germany of the potential repercussions of harming Ms.

Cavell, she was led before a firing squad and shot to death at the age of 49. The night before her execution, she made peace with her impending death and the circumstances that led her to it, telling her pastor: "Patriotism is not enough, I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone."Cavell's execution is seen as one of the turning points of World War 1: the British government was able to capitalize on the overwhelming public outrage surrounding her death by creating anti-German propaganda that bolstered military support in the United Kingdom and public support for the Allied cause in the United States, which had not yet entered the war. In a time when patriotism is still being watered down to the kind of pin you wear on your lapel, it's important to remember what a real heroine looks like. And Edith Cavell was one; not only for her bravery, for her strength, for her willingness to put the lives of others above her own, but for her ability to hold these beliefs and act upon them without resorting to hatred for others in order to bolster them.

Edith Cavell stayed true to her beliefs until the end, knowing that it wasn't just patriotism, but patriotism and the knowledge that her actions brought some good into the world that would give her the peace she was looking for before she met her fate. For you can try to conjure up ideas of patriotism all you want, but if your heart is in a bad place, and you're using "patriotism" as a means to create more hatred in the world, there's nothing heroic about your actions at all. And that's a lesson certain politicians could certainly stand to learn right about now. Edith Cavell [Wikipedia] "The Heroine Who Humbled Me" [Nightingale Declaration]

Question: Who said on the morning of her execution "I now know that patriotism is not enough"?
Answer: EDITH CAVELL