George Washington

George WashingtonGeorge Washington (1732-1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797.

George Washington Quotes

Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence. True friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to appellation.

—George Washington

Let us therefore animate and encourage each other, and show the whole world that a Freeman, contending for liberty on his own ground, is superior to any slavish mercenary on earth.

—George Washington

If we desire to avoid insult, we must be able to repel it; if we desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful instruments of our rising prosperity, it must be known, that we are at all times ready for War.

—George Washington

But lest some unlucky event should happen unfavorable to my reputation, I beg it may be remembered by every gentleman in the room that I this day declare with the utmost sincerity, I do not think myself equal to the command I am honored with.

—George Washington

To be prepared for War is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace.

—George Washington

I hope I shall possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.

—George Washington

Experience teaches us that it is much easier to prevent an enemy from posting themselves than it is to dislodge them after they have got possession.

—George Washington

A primary object should be the education of our youth in the science of government. In a republic, what species of knowledge can be equally important? And what duty more pressing than communicating it to those who are to be the future guardians of the liberties of the country?

—George Washington

If freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.

—George Washington

The turning points of lives are not the great moments. The real crises are often concealed in occurrences so trivial in appearance that they pass unobserved.

—George Washington

The Constitution is the guide which I never will abandon.

—George Washington

Associate yourself with men of good quality, if you esteem your own reputation; for ‘tis better to be alone than in bad company.

—George Washington

Be courteous to all, but intimate with few.

—George Washington

Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.

—George Washington

Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence.

—George Washington

99% of failures come from people who make excuses.

—George Washington

Truth will ultimately prevail where pains is taken to bring it to light.

—George Washington

I heard the bullets whistle, and, believe me, there is something charming in the sound.

—George Washington

Human happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected.

—George Washington

Discipline is the soul of an army. It makes small numbers formidable; procures success to the weak, and esteem to all.

—George Washington

When one side only of a story is heard and often repeated, the human mind becomes impressed with it insensibly.

—George Washington

Labor to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire called conscience.

—George Washington

But lest some unlucky event should happen unfavorable to my reputation, I beg it may be remembered by every gentleman in the room that I this day declare with the utmost sincerity, I do not think myself equal to the command I am honored with.

—George Washington

If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.

—George Washington

Happiness depends more upon the internal frame of a person’s own mind than on the externals in the world.

—George Washington

There is nothing which can better deserve our patronage than the promotion of science and literature. Knowledge is in every country the surest basis of public happiness.

—George Washington

As Mankind becomes more liberal, they will be more apt to allow that all those who conduct themselves as worthy members of the community are equally entitled to the protections of civil government.

—George Washington

Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence. True friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to appellation.

—George Washington

My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.

—George Washington

Gentlemen, you will permit me to put on my spectacles, for, I have grown not only gray, but almost blind in the service of my country.

—George Washington