On the record
I know many gentlemen think, that the very essence of liberty consists in being governed according to law; as if grievances had nothing real and intrinsic; but I cannot be of that opinion.
Said by
Edmund Burke
Source
gutenberg.orgEdmund Burke: “I know many gentlemen think, that the very essence of liberty consists in being governed according to law; as if…”
Editor's note · Context
Burke argues that true liberty involves more than just being governed by law, emphasizing the reality of grievances.
Share
More from Edmund Burke
Jan 1, 1790
The engagement and pact of society, which generally goes by the name of the Constitution, forbids such invasion and such surrender.
Jan 1, 1790
They have little regard to the obvious consequences of their doctrine, though they may see that it leaves positive authority in very few of the positive institutions of this country.
Jan 1, 1790
The House of Lords, for instance, is not morally competent to dissolve the House of Commons,--no, nor even to dissolve itself, nor to abdicate, if it would, its portion in the legislature of the kingdom.
Jan 1, 1790
The speculative line of demarcation, where obedience ought to end and resistance must begin, is faint, obscure, and not easily definable.
Other voices in this conversation
