All Time Famous George Washington Quotes

George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799) was an American Founding Father, military officer, politician, and statesman who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Second Continental Congress as commander of the Continental Army in 1775, Washington led Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War and then served as president of the Constitutional Convention in 1787, which drafted and ratified the Constitution of the United States and established the U.S. federal government. Washington has thus been known as the “Father of the Nation”.

George Washington served as the surveyor of Culpeper County in Virginia before receiving military training. During the French and Indian War, he commanded the Virginia Regiment. Washington later became a delegate to the Continental Congress and was appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. His leadership led to a decisive victory and the Treaty of Paris, recognizing the United States’ sovereignty. After the war, Washington played a key role in adopting the Constitution, becoming the first U.S. president in 1789. He implemented a strong national government, navigated cabinet rivalries, and set enduring presidential precedents. His farewell address emphasized national unity and warned against regionalism and foreign influence. Washington’s iconic image is memorialized through monuments, holidays, and various honors. Posthumously, he was promoted to the rank of general of the Armies in 1976, and he consistently ranks as one of the greatest U.S. presidents in polls.

George Washington Quotes

1. “Perseverance and spirit have done wonders in all ages.”
— George Washington

2. “It is better to be alone than in bad company.”
— George Washington

3. “Honesty is always the best policy.”
— George Washington

4. “The harder the conflict, the greater the triumph.”
— George Washington

5. “99% of failures come from people who make excuses.”
— George Washington

6. “The thing that separates the American Christian from every other person on earth is the fact that he would rather die on his feet, than to live on his knees.”
— George Washington

7. “It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one.”
— George Washington

8. “If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.”
— George Washington

9. “In time of peace, prepare for war.”
— George Washington

10. “Happiness depends more upon the internal frame of a person’s own mind, than on the externals in the world.”
— George Washington

11. “The people must remain ever vigilant against tyrants masquerading as public servants.”
— George Washington

12. “It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the Bible.”
— George Washington

13. “Make sure you are doing what God wants you to do – then do it with all your strength.”
— George Washington

14. “The Constitution is the guide which I never will abandon.”
— George Washington

15. “Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence.”
— George Washington

16. “Few men have virtue to withstand the highest bidder. ”
— George Washington

17. “The last official act of any government is to loot the treasury.”
— George Washington

18. “Worry is the interest paid by those who borrow trouble.”
— George Washington

19. “Truth will ultimately prevail where there are pains to bring it to light.”
— George Washington

20. “Agriculture is the most healthful, most useful, and most noble employment of man.”
— George Washington

21. “Good moral character is the first essential in a man.”
— George Washington

22. “Leadership is not only having a vision, but also having the courage, the discipline, and the resources to get you there.”
— George Washington

23. “When any nation mistrusts its citizens with guns, it’s sending a clear message. It no longer trusts its citizens because such a government has evil plans.”
— George Washington

24. “A hundred thousand men, coming one after another, cannot move a Ton weight; but the united strength of 50 would transport it with ease.”
— George Washington

25. “Freedom and Property Rights are inseparable. You can’t have one without the other.”
— George Washington

26. “I hope I shall possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.”
— George Washington

27. “To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace.”
— George Washington

28. “Discipline is the soul of an army. It makes small numbers formidable; procures success to the weak, and esteem to all.”
— George Washington

29. “Associate with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation; for it is better to be alone than in bad company.”
— George Washington

30. “Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master.”
— George Washington

31. “I had always hoped that this land might become a safe and agreeable asylum to the virtuous and persecuted part of mankind, to whatever nation they might belong.”
— George Washington

32. “A pack of jackasses led by a lion is superior to a pack of lions led by a jackass.”
— George Washington

33. “Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism.”
— George Washington

34. “The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive the Veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their nation.”
— George Washington

35. “The best and only safe road to honor glory, and true dignity is justice.”
— George Washington

36. “I had rather be on my farm than be emperor of the world.”
— George Washington

37. “Example, whether it be good or bad, has a powerful influence.”
— George Washington

38. “Let your heart feel for the afflictions and distress of everyone, and let your hand give in proportion to your purse.”
— George Washington

39. “It’s only natural for unbridled partisanship, unrestrained by allegiance to a greater cause, to lead to chaos.”
— George Washington

40. “I conceive a knowledge of books is the basis upon which other knowledge is to be built.”
— George Washington

41. “Bless my family, kindred, friends and country, be our God and guide this day and forever for His sake, who lay down in the grave and arose again for us, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”
— George Washington

42. “To persevere in one’s duty, and be silent is the best answer to calumny.”
— George Washington

43. “The bosom of America is open to receive not only the Opulent and respected Stranger, but the oppressed and persecuted of all Nations and Religions; whom we shall welcome to a participation of all our rights and privileges…”
— George Washington

44. “Happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected.”
— George Washington

45. “All Freemasonry should be disbanded in America because our organization has been infiltrated by the Illuminati and they have bad intentions for America and the World.”
— George Washington

46. “If you can’t send money, send tobacco.”
— George Washington

47. “Decision-making, like coffee, needs a cooling process.”
— George Washington

48. “Some day, following the example of the United States of America, there will be a United States of Europe.”
— George Washington

49. “My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual, and physical education I received from her.”
— George Washington

50. “I heard the bullets whistle – and believe me, there is something charming in the sound.”
— George Washington

51. “The future of this nation depends on the Christian training of our youth.”
— George Washington

52. “Discipline is the soul of an army.”
— George Washington

53. “We must consult our means rather than our wishes.”
— George Washington

54. “Almighty God, we make our earnest prayer that thou wilt keep the United States in thy holy protection…”
— George Washington

55. “Patience is a noble virtue, and, when rightly exercised, does not fail of its reward.”
— George Washington

56. “The finite mind of man can never grasp the mysteries of the infinite. It is the highest wisdom, as it is our great happiness, to accept our limitations, to use what we have, and leave the rest to God.”
— George Washington

57. “The time is near at hand which must determine whether Americans are to be free men or slaves.”
— George Washington

58. “I cannot tell a lie. I cut down the cherry tree.”
— George Washington

59. “True friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation.”
— George Washington

60. “I die hard but am not afraid to go.”
— George Washington

61. “It is an old adage that honesty is the best policy-this applies to public as well as private life-to States as well as individuals.”
— George Washington

62. “We take the star from Heaven, the red from our mother country, separating it by white stripes, thus showing that we have separated from her, and the white stripes shall go down to posterity representing liberty.”
— George Washington

63. “Without virtue, and without integrity, the finest talents and the most brilliant accomplishments can never gain the respect, and conciliate the esteem, of the truly valuable part of mankind.”
— George Washington

64. “Religion and morality are the essential pillars of civil society.”
— George Washington

65. “It is infinitely better to have a few good men than many indifferent ones.”
— George Washington

66. “If we are wise, let us prepare for the worst.”
— George Washington

67. “To speak evil of anyone, unless there is unequivocal proof of their deserving it, is an injury for which there is no adequate reparation.”
— George Washington

68. “My first wish is to see this plague of mankind, war, banished from the earth.”
— George Washington

69. “It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God.”
— George Washington

70. “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible. Do not ever let anyone claim to be a true American patriot if they ever attempt to separate religion from politics.”
— George Washington

71. “The administration of justice is the firmest pillar of government.”
— George Washington

72. “There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily.”
— George Washington

73. “Undertake not what you cannot perform, but be careful to keep your promise.”
— George Washington

74. “The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty, and the destiny of the Republican model of Government, are justly considered as deeply, perhaps as finally staked, on the experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people.”
— George Washington

75. “What students would learn in American schools above all is the religion of Jesus Christ.”
— George Washington

76. “The eyes of all our countrymen are now upon us, and we shall have their blessings and praises if happily, we are the instruments of saving them from the tyranny meditated against them.”
— George Washington

77. “But if the laws are to be so trampled upon with impunity, and a minority is to dictate to the majority, there is an end put at one stroke to republican government, and nothing but anarchy and confusion is to be expected thereafter…”
— George Washington

78. “It will be found an unjust and unwise jealousy to deprive a man of his natural liberty upon the supposition he may abuse it.”
— George Washington

79. “To encourage literature and the arts is a duty which every good citizen owes to his country.”
— George Washington

80. “Observe good faith and justice towards all Nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all. Religion and morality enjoin this conduct; and can it be that good policy does not equally enjoin it?”
— George Washington

81. “To rectify past blunders is impossible, but we might profit by the experience of them.”
— George Washington

82. “The Arts and Sciences, essential to the prosperity of the State and to the ornament of human life, have a primary claim to the encouragement of every lover of his country and mankind.”
— George Washington

83. “Be Americans. Let there be no sectionalism, no North, South, East or West. You are all dependent on one another and should be one in union. In one word, be a nation. Be Americans, and be true to yourselves.”
— George Washington

84. “Make the most of the Indian Hemp Seed and sow it everywhere.”
— George Washington

85. “It was not my intention to doubt that, the Doctrines of the Illuminati, and principles of Jacobinism had not spread in the United States. On the contrary, no one is more truly satisfied of this fact than I am.”
— George Washington

86. “Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair; the rest is in the hands of God.”
— George Washington

87. “I was no party man myself, and the first wish of my heart was if parties did exist, to reconcile them.”
— George Washington

88. “You do well to wish to learn our arts and ways of life, and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier people than you are. Congress will do everything they can to assist you in this wise intention…”
— George Washington

89. “We can not guarantee success, we can strive to deserve it.”
— George Washington

90. “The United States of America should have a foundation free from the influence of clergy.”
— George Washington

91. “All Nations must acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favors.”
— George Washington

92. “The power under the Constitution will always be in the people.”
— George Washington

93. “A free people ought not only to be armed but disciplined; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite; and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military, supplies.”
— George Washington

94. “It is our policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world.”
— George Washington

95. “Do not conceive that fine clothes make fine men any more than fine feathers make fine birds.”
— George Washington

96. “Freemasonry is an order whose leading star is philanthropy and whose principles inculcate an unceasing devotion to the cause of virtue and morality.”
— George Washington

97. “Our Constitution gives to bigotry no sanction.”
— George Washington

98. “When we assumed the Soldier, we did not lay aside the Citizen.”
— George Washington

99. “You have only one way to convince others, listen to them.”
— George Washington

100. “Occupants of public offices love power and are prone to abuse it.”
— George Washington

101. “The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference – they deserve a place of honor with all that’s good.”
— George Washington

102. “True friendship is a plant of slow growth.”
— George Washington

103. “The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage and conduct of this army. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.”
— George Washington

104. “My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother.”
— George Washington

105. “The turning points of lives are not the great moments. The real crises are often concealed in occurrences so trivial in appearance that they pass unobserved.”
— George Washington

106. “I walk on untrodden ground. There is scarcely any part of my conduct which may not hereafter be drawn into precedent.”
— George Washington

107. “Where are our Men of abilities? Why do they not come forth to save their Country?”
— George Washington

108. “A government is like fire, a handy servant, but a dangerous master.”
— George Washington

109. “To err is nature, to rectify error is glory.”
— George Washington

110. “The foolish and wicked practice of profane cursing and swearing is a vice so mean and low that every person of sense and character detests and despises it.”
— George Washington

111. “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.”
— George Washington

112. “When one side only of a story is heard and often repeated, the human mind becomes impressed with it insensibly.”
— George Washington

113. “I have always considered marriage as the most interesting event of one’s life, the foundation of happiness or misery.”
— George Washington

114. “One’s god dictates the kind of law one implements and also controls the application and development of that law over time. Given enough time, all non-Christian systems of law self-destruct in a fit of tyranny.”
— George Washington

115. “Government being, among other purposes, instituted to protect the consciences of men from oppression, it certainly is the duty of Rulers, not only to abstain from it themselves, but according to their stations, to prevent it in others.”
— George Washington

116. “It is impossible to account for the creation of the universe without the agency of a Supreme Being.”
— George Washington

117. “I shall never ask, never refuse, nor ever resign an office.”
— George Washington

118. “Republicanism is not the phantom of a deluded imagination. On the contrary, laws, under no form of government, are better supported, liberty and property better secured, or happiness more effectually dispensed to mankind.”
— George Washington

119. “The Constitution that we have is an excellent one, if we can keep it where it is.”
— George Washington

120. “Real men despise battle, but will never run from it.”
— George Washington

121. “The Hand of providence has been so conspicuous in all this, that he must be worse than an infidel that lacks faith, and more than wicked, that has not gratitude enough to acknowledge his obligations.”
— George Washington

122. “A sensible woman can never be happy with a fool.”
— George Washington

123. “My death has not yet quite arrived, but it is near and inevitable as night follows day.”
— George Washington

124. “Liberty, when it degrades into licentiousness, begets confusion, and frequently ends in tyranny or some woeful confusion.”
— George Washington

125. “We must never despair; our situation has been compromising before, and it has changed for the better; so I trust it will again. If difficulties arise, we must put forth new exertion and proportion our efforts to the exigencies of the times.”
— George Washington

126. “The Stamp Act imposed on the colonies by the Parliament of Great Britain is an ill-judged measure. Parliament has no right to put its hands into our pockets without our consent.”
— George Washington

127. “My opinion with respect to immigration is, that except of useful mechanics and some particular description of men and professions, there is no use of encouragement.”
— George Washington

128. “All I am, I owe to my mother.”
— George Washington

129. “It is at all times more easy to make enemies than friends.”
— George Washington

130. “I have only been an instrument in the hands of Providence.”
— George Washington

131. “To contract new debts is not the way to pay old ones.”
— George Washington

132. “Freemasonry is founded on the immutable laws of Truth and Justice and its grand object is to promote the happiness of the human race.”
— George Washington

133. “Peace with all the world is my sincerest wish.”
— George Washington

134. “A people unused to restraint must be led, they will not be drove.”
— George Washington

135. “No pecuniary consideration is more urgent, than the regular redemption and discharge of the public debt: on none can delay be more injurious, or an economy of time more valuable.”
— George Washington

136. “Let your Discourse with Men of Business be Short and Comprehensive.”
— George Washington

137. “No distance can keep anxious lovers long asunder.”
— George Washington

138. “There is nothing which can better deserve your patronage, than the promotion of science and literature. Knowledge is in every country the surest basis of public happiness.”
— George Washington

139. “The whole duty of man is summed up in obedience to God’s will.”
— George Washington

140. “Why should I expect to be exempt from censure; the unfailing lot of an elevated station? My Heart tells me it has been my unremitted aim to do the best circumstances would permit; yet, I may have been very often mistaken in my judgment of the means.”
— George Washington

141. “To stand well in the estimation of one’s country is a happiness that no rational creature can be insensible of.”
— George Washington

142. “One thing and only one thing a Masonic Lodge can give its members which they can get nowhere else in the world. That one thing is Masonry.”
— George Washington

143. “The best way to have peace is to always be prepared to fight a way.”
— George Washington

144. “How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and the strong. Because someday in life you will have been all of these.”
— George Washington

145. “Let experience solve it. To listen to mere speculation in such a case were criminal.”
— George Washington

146. “One of his officers, Henry Lee, summed up contemporary public opinion of Washington: First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.”
— George Washington

147. “Almighty and eternal Lord God, the great Creator of heaven and earth, and the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; look down from heaven in pity and compassion upon me thy servant, who humbly prostrate myself before thee.”
— George Washington

148. “It follows then as certain as that night succeeds the day, that without a decisive naval force we can do nothing definitive, and with it, everything honorable and glorious.”
— George Washington

149. “To form a new Government, requires infinite care, and unbounded attention; for if the foundation is badly laid the superstructure must be bad.”
— George Washington

150. “I know of no pursuit in which more real and important services can be rendered to any country than by improving its agriculture, its breed of useful animals, and other branches of a husbandman’s cares.”
— George Washington

151. “May the father of all mercies scatter light, and not darkness, upon our paths, and make us in all our several vocations useful here, and in His own due time and way everlastingly happy.”
— George Washington

152. “The tumultuous populace of large cities are ever to be dreaded. Their indiscriminate violence prostrates for the time all public authority, and its consequences are sometimes extensive and terrible.”
— George Washington

153. “There is nothing so likely to produce peace as to be well prepared to meet the enemy.”
— George Washington

154. “If ever again our nation stumbles upon unfunded paper, it shall surely be like death to our body politic. This country will crash.”
— George Washington

155. “Your love of liberty – your respect for the laws – your habits of industry – and your practice of the moral and religious obligations, are the strongest claims to national and individual happiness.”
— George Washington

156. “Our cause is noble; it is the cause of mankind!”
— George Washington

157. “Have the strength to be an honest person.”
— George Washington

158. “The very idea of the power and the right of the people to establish government presupposes the duty of every individual to obey the established government.”
— George Washington

159. “Peace with all the world is my sincere wish. I am sure it is our true policy, and am persuaded it is the ardent desire of the government.”
— George Washington

160. “While we are contending for our own liberty, we should be very cautious not to violate the conscience of others, ever considering that God alone is the judge of the hearts of men, and to Him only in this case are they answerable.”
— George Washington

161. “Thirteen sovereignties pulling against each other and all tugging at the federal head, will soon bring ruin on the whole.”
— George Washington

162. “Every action in company ought to be with some sign of respect to those present.”
— George Washington

163. “It will be worthy of a free, enlightened, and, at no distant period, a great nation, to give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a people always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence.”
— George Washington

164. “What a triumph for the advocates of despotism to find that we are incapable of governing ourselves, and that systems founded on the basis of equal liberty are merely ideal and fallacious.”
— George Washington

165. “We should not look back unless it is to derive useful lessons from past errors, and for the purpose of profiting by dearly bought experience.”
— George Washington

166. “But lest some unlucky event should happen unfavorable to my reputation, I beg it may be remembered by every gentleman in the room that I this day declare with the utmost sincerity, I do not think myself equal to the command I am honored with.”
— George Washington

167. “The Army, as usual, are without pay; and a great part of the soldiery without shirts; and though the patience of them is equally threadbare, the States seem perfectly indifferent to their cries.”
— George Washington

168. “The consideration that human happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected will always continue to prompt me to promote the former by inculcating the practice of the latter.”
— George Washington

169. “Good company will always be found much less expensive than bad.”
— George Washington

170. “The United States is in no way founded upon the Christian religion.”
— George Washington

171. “Life is always uncertain, and common prudence dictates to every man the necessity of settling his temporal concerns, while it is in his power, and while the mind is calm and undisturbed.”
— George Washington

172. “Unhappy it is, though, to reflect that a brother’s sword has been sheathed in a brother’s breast and that the once-happy plains of America are either to be drenched with blood or inhabited by slaves. Sad alternative! But can a virtuous man hesitate in his choice?”
— George Washington

173. “There is a rank due to the United States among nations which will be withheld, if not absolutely lost, by the reputation of weakness.”
— George Washington

174. “My manner of living is plain and I do not mean to be put out of it. A glass of wine and a bit of mutton are always ready.”
— George Washington

175. “The internet is full of many false and unverified quotes.”
— George Washington

176. “Every day the increasing weight of years admonishes me more and more, that the shade of retirement is as necessary to me as it will be welcome.”
— George Washington

177. “I can only say that there is not a man living who wishes more sincerely than I do to see a plan adopted for the abolition of slavery.”
— George Washington

178. “The General hopes and trusts that every officer and man will endeavor to live and act as becomes a Christian soldier defending the dearest rights and liberties of his country.”
— George Washington

179. “Without a decisive naval force we can do nothing definitive.”
— George Washington

180. “Bad seed is a robbery of the worst kind: for your pocket-book not only suffers by it, but your preparations are lost and a season passes away unimproved.”
— George Washington

181. “Be not forward, but friendly and courteous; the first to salute, hear and answer; and be not pensive when it is time to converse.”
— George Washington

182. “Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.”
— George Washington

183. “Speak not injurious words, neither in jest nor earnest. Scoff at none though they give occasion.”
— George Washington

184. “Promote then as an object of primary importance, Institutions for the general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion should be enlightened.”
— George Washington

185. “No taxes can be devised which are not more or less inconvenient and unpleasant.”
— George Washington

186. “Freemasonry is an institution founded on eternal reason and truth; whose deep basis is the civilization of mankind, and whose everlasting glory it is to have the immovable support of those two mighty pillars, science and morality.”
— George Washington

187. “I can never think of promoting my convenience at the expense of a friend’s interest and inclination.”
— George Washington

188. “Always speak the truth.”
— George Washington

189. “The liberality of sentiment toward each other, which marks every political and religious denomination of men in this country, stands unparalleled in the history of nations.”
— George Washington

190. “One of the expedients of party to acquire influence, within particular districts, is to misrepresent the opinions and aims of other districts.”
— George Washington

191. “Religious controversies are always productive of more acrimony and irreconcilable hatreds than those which spring from any other cause.”
— George Washington

192. “Let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.”
— George Washington

193. “Let no one go hungry away. If any of the kind of people should be in want of corn, supply their necessities, provided it does not encourage them in idleness.”
— George Washington

194. “Influence is not government.”
— George Washington

195. “To the distinguished character of patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian.”
— George Washington

196. “It is to be lamented that great characters are seldom without a blot.”
— George Washington

197. “There was not a member of the Constitutional Convention who had the least objection to what is contended for by the advocates for a Bill of Rights and trial by jury.”
— George Washington

198. “Every post is honourable in which a man can serve his country.”
— George Washington

199. “I have often expressed my sentiments, that every man, conducting himself as a good citizen, and being accountable to God alone for his religious opinions, ought to be protected in worshipping the Deity according to the dictates of his own conscience.”
— George Washington

200. “A primary object should be the education of our youth in the science of government. In a republic, what species of knowledge can be equally important? And what duty more pressing than communicating it to those who are to be the future guardians of the liberties of the country?”
— George Washington