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date: 25 January 2025

William Pitt, Earl of Chatham 1708–78
British Whig statesman; Prime Minister, 1766–8 

  1. The atrocious crime of being a young man…I shall neither attempt to palliate nor deny.
    speech, House of Commons, 2 March 1741
  2. The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the forces of the Crown. It may be frail—its roof may shake—the wind may blow through it—the storm may enter—the rain may enter—but the King of England cannot enter!
    speech, March 1763, in Lord Brougham Historical Sketches of Statesmen in the Time of George III First Series (1845) vol. 1
  3. Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it.
    speech, House of Lords, 9 January 1770; see Acton
  4. There is something behind the throne greater than the King himself.
    speech, House of Lords, 2 March 1770
  5. You cannot conquer America.
    speech, House of Lords, 18 November 1777
  6. The parks are the lungs of London.
    speech by William Windham, House of Commons, 30 June 1808