“ We are graced with a godlike ability to transcend time and space in our minds but are chained to death. Russell Shorto
“ As happens so often in history at the dying of one age and the birth of another, an era of phenomenal ugliness, strife, and chaos was about to unfold. Russell Shorto
“ For liberalism is a delicate thing. It encompasses so much -- constitutional government, democratic elections, freedom of worship, civil rights, free trade -- that we think of it as timeless and unive… Russell Shorto
“ The curious Dutch classification gedogen, which means 'technically illegal but officially tolerated. Russell Shorto
“ Opinions differ on the question of whether a golden age is something you can experience while it's happening or whether it only comes into focus on reflection...no matter how grand and prosperous and… Russell Shorto
“ They had applied their doubts to the very head that had introduced doubt as a tool for advancing knowledge. And in the end they gave the head a nod. Russell Shorto
“ Henry Hudson was in his forties when he stepped into the light of history, a seasoned mariner, a man with a strong and resourceful wife and three sons, a man born and raised not only to the sea but to… Russell Shorto
“ For individual freedom can come about only, can be conceived only, if there is some sense of security to life. Russell Shorto
“ He developed his revolutionary philosophy, with its grounding not in the Bible or ancient writers but in human reason, and became famous and infamous for it. Russell Shorto
“ There was actually a time when people wanted to give Hitler the benefit of the doubt as to his intentions (in 1935, Winston Churchill thought it possible that Hitler might 'go down in history as the m… Russell Shorto
“ There, she identified a recurring cycle that kept women in a downward spiral: families that were already poor and struggling to stay alive kept having more babies, dragging them down still further. In… Russell Shorto
“ Instead, power went to those who made things happen: businessmen and local magistrates. Over time, human nature being what it is, these men would create a kind of nobility, sometimes even buying title… Russell Shorto
“ This book tells the story of that moment in time. It is a story of high adventure set during the age of exploration—when Francis Drake, Henry Hudson, and Captain John Smith were expanding the boundari… Russell Shorto
“ Embedded in this outlook is an idea of the body as a machine, so that illness is seen as a breakdown of the machine, healing involves repairing the broken parts, and a doctor is a kind of mechanic wit… Russell Shorto
“ Relying on physical remedies alone was often seen as downright ungodly: in England, Puritan minister John Sym advised caution that people dote not upon, nor trust, or ascribe too much to physical mean… Russell Shorto
“ [Charles the Fifth], pretty much every way worked to hold up the pillars of the medieval world order: monarchic power, domination by the Catholic Church, feudal land management, divine right, mercanti… Russell Shorto
“ The colony, enough time to impress the settlers with his abilities, and then returned to Europe; now he was coming back. Not long after his ship, the Sea-Mew, passed through the narrows between Staten… Russell Shorto
“ Where land was controlled by noblemen and/or the Church in other parts of Europe, in the province of Holland, circa 1500, only 5 percent of the land was owned by nobles, while peasants owned 45 percen… Russell Shorto
