Great events ever depend but upon a single hair. The adroit man profits by everything, neglects nothing which can increase his chances; the less adroit, by sometimes disregarding a single chance, fails in everything. Napoleon Bonaparte More Quotes by Napoleon Bonaparte More Quotes From Napoleon Bonaparte There are only two forces in the world, the sword and the spirit. In the long run the sword will always be conquered by the spirit. Napoleon Bonaparte running two long In a battle, as in a siege, the art consists in concentrating very heavy fire on a particular point. The line of battle once established, the one who has the ability to concentrate an unlooked for mass of artillery suddenly and unexpectedly on one of these points is sure to carry the day. Napoleon Bonaparte battle fire art In our time no one has the conception of what is great. It is up to me to show them. Napoleon Bonaparte conception our-time shows It is in times of difficulty that great nations like great men display the whole energy of their character and become an object of admiration to posterity. Napoleon Bonaparte character men history A soul you say? Give my pocketwatch to a savage and he'll think it has a soul. Napoleon Bonaparte atheist giving thinking Good and decent people must be protected and persuaded by gentle means, but the rabble must be led by terror. Napoleon Bonaparte power mean people The first virtue in a soldier is endurance of fatigue; courage is only the second virtue. Napoleon Bonaparte endurance determination soldier Time is the great art of man. Napoleon Bonaparte great-art men art The purely defensive is doomed to defeat. Napoleon Bonaparte doomed defeat Every beggar shall be arrested. But to arrest a beggar merely in order to put him in jail would be barbarous and absurd. He should be arrested for the sole purpose of teaching him how to earn a living by his work. Napoleon Bonaparte jail teaching order Never lose sight of this maxim, that you should establish your cantonments at the most distant and best protected point from the enemy, especially where a surprise is possible. By this means you will have time to unite all your forces before he can attack you. Napoleon Bonaparte sight war mean All things proclaim the existence of God. Napoleon Bonaparte existence-of-god god-exists existence For the stability of the Government, the people should have a considerable voice in the elections. Napoleon Bonaparte government power should-have I haven't known 6 days of happiness in my life. Napoleon Bonaparte known havens attitude Cossacks are the best light troops among all that exist. If I had them in my army, I would go through all the world with them. Napoleon Bonaparte troops army light Man loves the marvelous. It has an irresistible charm for him. He is always ready to leave that with which he is familiar to pursue vain inventions. He lends himself to his own deception. Napoleon Bonaparte invention deception men The transition from the defensive to the offensive is one of the most delicate operations in war. Napoleon Bonaparte offensive transition war In a great nation, the majority are incapable of judging wisely of things. Napoleon Bonaparte majority power judging The contagion of crime is like that of the plague. Criminals collected together corrupt each other. They are worse than ever when, at the termination of their punishment, they return to society. Napoleon Bonaparte punishment evil together A revolution is an idea which has found its bayonets. Napoleon Bonaparte political war ideas