John Bartlett (1820–1905). Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. 1919.
4884 Arthur Wellesley
| NUMBER: | 4884 |
| AUTHOR: | Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington (1769–1852) |
| QUOTATION: | It is very true that I have said that I considered Napoleon’s presence in the field equal to forty thousand men in the balance. This is a very loose way of talking; but the idea is a very different one from that of his presence at a battle being equal to a reinforcement of forty thousand men. |
| ATTRIBUTION: | Mem. by the Duke, 1 Sept. 18, 1836. |
| Note 1. Stanhope: Conversations with the Duke of Wellington, p. 81. [back] |