1001Philosophers

Joseph de Maistre Quotes on Politics

Joseph-Marie, Count de Maistre, was a Savoyard lawyer, diplomat, and political philosopher and one of the most powerful counter-Enlightenment voices of the early nineteenth century. This page collects quotes attributed to Joseph de Maistre on the topic of politics, drawn from across the philosopher's works.

Quotes

  • Attributed to Joseph de Maistre:

    “Every nation has the government it deserves.”

  • Attributed to Joseph de Maistre:

    “Where there is no judge, there is no political society.”

  • Attributed to Joseph de Maistre:

    “The hangman is the foundation of social order.”

  • Attributed to Joseph de Maistre:

    “Reason cannot govern the world; only authority can.”

  • Attributed to Joseph de Maistre:

    “Man is too wicked to be free.”

  • Attributed to Joseph de Maistre:

    “All grandeur, all power, all subordination, rest on the executioner.”