Famous Sir Winston Churchill Quote

“Democracy is the worst form of government except for all those others that have been tried.”

Sir Winston Churchill

~ Sir Winston Churchill
(1874-1965) Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1940-1945, 1951-1955)

Democracy , Politics , Power , Tyranny

Ratings and Comments

Kimmie O'Connor, Waleska 10/8/05

Chicago 3/3/06

Only history will tell...

Michael LeBreton, Victoria 12/30/06

Phuong, Boston 6/21/07

Right on

Mike, Norwalk 10/31/08

A Constitutional Republic where each individual was a king and a priest, a sovereign and Caesar, etc., was antithetical to democracy and (if not the best) one of the best governments every established. Many monarchies and other forms of government have been far superior to democracy. The first half of the quote is closer to the truth, Democracy is one of the worst forms of government.

Bryan Morton, Stuart, FL 10/31/08

Democracy's just an improved method of spreading tyranny and making it more palatable to the common dufus.

jim k, austin 10/31/08

I'm with Mike and Bryan on this.

warren, olathe 10/31/08

E Archer, NYC 10/31/08

How about a Constitutional respresentative republican form of government? We only tried that for about 100 years before it became corrupted. The point is moot -- "Give me control of a nation's currency, and I care not who makes the laws." -- Rothschild. As long as we do not address our fiat funny money, it doesn't matter who is in power. When democracy devolves into voting for money from a central bank, we have merely become the slaves of the money changers.

RBESRQ 10/31/08

I love that quote and typical of Churchill - I don't know where he found time to write 72 volumes including "History of the English Speaking Peoples". He was even a member of the Brick layers union - what a man... If only Roosevelt listen to him at Yalta, but that's a story for another day.

A.WOODS, Gloucester 11/3/08

I don't know the context in which Churchill made this statement, but "democracy" is a much more accessible term for most than "constitutional representative republic". Not to defend the many who see the two forms as the same thing, but Churchill seemed to know his audiences, what they could handle and what kind of language a situation called for. A brilliant man.

Lazarus, Cleveland 10/8/10

Churchill was speaking of the modern hybrid of a Democratic Republic. Anyone who does not recognize that is poorly educated.

Glenda 2/24/21

See also: "The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries." -Churchill

Mike, Norwalk Glenda 2/25/21

Glenda, Churchill here works off of a false Marxist dogma and premise. No part of capitalism's definition involves sharing (the same as a steel pole’s definition does not include sharing). To equate the two is an expanded lie to promote a false concept and tyranny. Originally, capital was a tangible entity with intrinsic value (took labor to create — finding sea shells, mining and minting metal, etc.) as well as would have some commercial value that was a measured excess. An individual, such as a woodsman would labor in the forest, hewing down trees and creating useful products (lumber, fire wood, etc.) and then selling the product of his labor for a convenient medium of financial exchange. After the woodsman paid all life's mandates (food, clothing, shelter, family, etc.) he could use the excess medium to increase his yield. The processes of increasing the yield through capital was called capitalism. Once an increase in wealth occurred through capitalism, the woodsman had opportunity to share his increase (which by personal perception could be considered a blessing).

Famous Sir Winston Churchill Quote

“Democracy is the worst form of government except for all those others that have been tried.”

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