The ministers of kings should learn to moderate their ambition. The higher they elevate themselves above their proper sphere, the greater the danger that they will fall.
Louis XivRead
I am dying, but the state remains.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects the enduring nature of institutions despite the mortality of individuals.
Louis XIV's declaration, 'I am dying, but the state remains,' underscores the idea that while personal lives are finite, the structure of governance and the state persist beyond any single individual's life. It conveys a profound recognition of the separation between the individual and the larger entity of the state, highlighting the importance of continuity in political systems and the legacy of leadership.
Themes
MortalityStateEnduranceLegacyLeadership
In practice
Example use cases
During a historical lecture about monarchies, I could illustrate the quote to discuss the impact of rulers on state longevity.
More from Louis Xiv
All quotes βMy child, you are going to be a great king; do not imitate me in the taste I have had for building, or in that I have had for war; try, on the contrary, to be at peace with your neighbors.
Louis XivRead
Every time I appoint someone to a vacant position, I make a hundred unhappy and one ungrateful.
Louis XivRead
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Not hear it? --yes, I hear it, and have heard it. Long --long --long --many minutes, many hours, many days, have I heard it --yet I dared not --oh, pity me, miserable wretch that I am! --I dared not --I dared not speak! We have put her living in the tomb!
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