---
title: "In ancient times the State absorbed authorities not its own, and intr… — John Acton Quote #15 | QuotesBy.net"
description: "In ancient times the State absorbed authorities not its own, and intruded on the domain of personal freedom. In the Middle Ages it possessed too litt… — a quote by John Acton."
image: "https://quotesby.net/wp-content/themes/quotesby-editorial/assets/og-default.png"
---

> # In ancient times the State absorbed authorities not its own, and intruded on the domain of personal freedom. In the Middle Ages it possessed too little authority, and suffered others to intrude. Modern States fall habitually into both excesses. The most certain test by which we judge whether a country is really free is the amount of security enjoyed by minorities.

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## More from John Acton

1. > By liberty I mean the assurance that every man shall be protected in doing what he believes his duty against the influence of authority and majorities, custom …

[Permalink to quote \#14](https://quotesby.net/John-Acton/14/ "Permalink to quote 14")
2. > It is bad to be oppressed by a minority, but it is worse to be oppressed by a majority. For there is a reserve of latent power in the masses which, if it is ca…

[Permalink to quote \#16](https://quotesby.net/John-Acton/16/ "Permalink to quote 16")
3. > At all times sincere friends of freedom have been rare, and its triumphs have been due to minorities, that have prevailed by associating themselves with auxili…

[Permalink to quote \#13](https://quotesby.net/John-Acton/13/ "Permalink to quote 13")

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