When despotism has established itself for ages in a country, as in France, it is not in the person of the king only that it resides.
Thomas Paine: “When despotism has established itself for ages in a country, as in France, it is not in the person of the king only that…”
Editor's note · Context
In "Rights of Man," Paine asserts that long-established despotism permeates a country's system, not just the individual monarch.
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