We see the crude and corrupt beginnings of a higher civilization blotted out by the ferocious uprising of the native tribes. Still, it is the primary right of men to die and kill for the land they live in, and to punish with exceptional severity all members of their own race who have warmed their hands at the invaders' hearth.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Churchill justifies violent resistance by indigenous people against invaders as a natural right.
- In plain terms
- People have the right to fight and kill to protect their land from invaders.
- What can you take from it?
- Resistance to invasion is seen as a fundamental right.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Is violence ever a right?
- How do we view colonial resistance?
Another view
It normalizes ethnic retaliation and ignores context.
More from Winston Churchill
At this point the march of invention brought a new factor upon the scene. Iron was dug and forged. Men armed with iron entered Britain from the Continent and k…
Permalink to quote #92 Apparently, as in so many ancient battles, the beaten side were the victims of misunderstanding and the fate of the day was decided against them before the bul…
Permalink to quote #94 No one can understand history without continually relating the long periods which are constantly mentioned to the experiences of our own short lives. Five year…
Permalink to quote #91
Related quotes
I felt this war coming. I tried unsuccessfully to assassinate Hitler in 1945. I am not concerned with jurisdiction of the court as Hess or others are. History …
Albert SpeerAlbert Speer quote #1 Nazis did not expect Soviet resistance to be so strong. The deeper they moved into this country's territory, the more fierce it became. When Hitler's armies ap…
Georgy ZhukovGeorgy Zhukov quote #4 Sitting Bull, most renowned Sioux of modern history, is dead. He was not a Chief, but without Kingly lineage he arose from a lowly position to the greatest Med…
L. Frank BaumL. Frank Baum quote #8