Then we find everywhere the truth of the old saying, that liberty thrives under weak princes; then the listening assembly begins not only to murmur, but to speak; then the grave council begins not so much to suggest as to inculcate, not so much to advise as to enjoin.
This quote illustrates the idea that liberty flourishes under weak rulers, leading to increased public discourse and engagement.
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More from Walter Bagehot
Savages waste away before modern civilisation; they seem to have held their ground before the ancient.
One of the greatest pains to human nature is the pain of a new idea.
They are above corruption because they are the corruptors.
He gave an excellent moral example to his contemporaries, but he is an instance of those whose good dies with them, while their evil lives after them.
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