Gustav Stresemann Quotes & Sayings (Page 2)

“As a result of the World War, this old Germany collapsed. It collapsed in its constitution, in its social order, in its economic structure. Its thinking and feeling changed.”

“A people that has experienced all that the Germans have been through, naturally offers fertile soil for the extremists.”

“A Shakespeare could have arisen only on English soil. In the same way, your great dramatists and poets express the nature and essence of the Norwegian people, but they also express that which is universally valid for all mankind.”

“Just as the British subject loves England despite her faults, so we must insist that all Germans who were part of the old Germany and helped shape her, recognize the greatness and worthiness of present-day Germany.”

“For the victor peace means the preservation of the position of power which he has secured. For the vanquished it means resigning himself to the position left to him.”

“I must begin by saying something about the old Germany. That Germany, too, suffered from superficial judgment, because appearances and reality were not always kept apart in people's minds.”

“But just as haste and restlessness are typical of our present-day life, so change also takes place more rapidly than before. This applies to change in the relationships between nations as it does to change within an individual nation.”

“To walk behind others on a road you are traveling together, to give precedence to others without envy - this is painful for an individual and painful for a nation.”

“Here we encounter two conflicting concepts with which we must come to grips in our time: the idea of national solidarity and the idea of international cooperation.”

“During the past few years I have led a sometimes hard battle for German foreign policy.”