They have murdered him, and have divided his kingdom as a spoil; but they who are the guilty are not they who furnish the example.
Edmund Burke: “They have murdered him, and have divided his kingdom as a spoil; but they who are the guilty are not they who furnish…”
Editor's note · Context
Burke condemns the murder of a ruler and the subsequent division of his kingdom, emphasizing the true guilt lies with the instigators.
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Let us add, if we please, but let us preserve what they have left; and standing on the firm ground of the British Constitution, let us be satisfied to admire, rather than attempt to follow in their desperate flights, the aëronauts of…
Not being illuminated with the light of which the gentlemen of France tell us they have got so abundant a share, they acted under a strong impression of the ignorance and fallibility of mankind.
Whatever they are, I wish my countrymen rather to recommend to our neighbors the example of the British Constitution than to take models from them for the improvement of our own.
If any of them should happen to propose a scheme of liberty soberly limited, and defined with proper qualifications, he will be immediately outbid by his competitors, who will produce something more splendidly popular.





