Edmund Burke

Edmund Burke PC (12 January 1729– 9 July 1797) was an Irish statesman, author, orator, political theorist and philosopher who, after moving to England, served for many years in the House of Commons of Great Britain as a member of the Whig party.

He is mainly remembered for his support of the cause of the American Revolutionaries, and for his later opposition to the French Revolution. The latter led to his becoming the leading figure within the conservative faction of the Whig party, which he dubbed the "Old Whigs", in opposition to the pro–French Revolution "New Whigs", led by Charles James Fox.

Burke was praised by both conservatives and liberals in the 19th century. Since the 20th century, he has generally been viewed as the philosophical founder of modern conservatism, as well as a representative of classical liberalism.

Read more about Edmund Burke:  Early Life, Member of Parliament, American War of Independence, Paymaster of The Forces, Democracy, India and The Impeachment of Warren Hastings, French Revolution: 1688 Versus 1789, Later Life, Legacy, Timeline Summary

Famous quotes by edmund burke:

    Society is indeed a contract.... It is a partnership in all science; a partnership in all art; a partnership in every virtue, and in all perfection. As the ends of such a partnership cannot be obtained in many generations, it becomes a partnership not only between those who are living, but between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to be born.
    Edmund Burke (1729–1797)

    A disposition to preserve, and an ability to improve, taken together, would be my standard of a statesman.
    Edmund Burke (1729–1797)

    Magnanimity in politics is not seldom the truest wisdom; and a great empire and little minds go ill together.
    Edmund Burke (1729–1797)

    Nothing is so fatal to religion as indifference which is, at least, half infidelity.
    Edmund Burke (1729–1797)

    Beauty in distress is much the most affecting beauty.
    Edmund Burke (1729–1797)