Historic British Quotations Trivia Quiz

Answer: Lord Nelson

This was the order of the day that Nelson sent to the Navy, shortly before the Battle of Trafalgar, 21 October 1805.

It is interesting that he said 'England expects', not 'Britain expects', let alone 'the U.K. expects'.

Answer: Aneurin Bevan

Aneurin Bevan, Minister of Health in Attlee's government (1945-51), made this comment just after a speech to a large meeting of Labour Party members in Manchester on 4 July 1948 - the eve of the launch of the National Health Service. In setting up the National Health Service, Bevan had had to contend with fierce opposition from the medical profession, which at that time was overwhelmingly Conservative.

The speech was not recorded or broadcast. After the meeting, he was asked if he'd described the Tories as 'vermin', to which he replied 'No, "lower than vermin" '.

The statement caused a public uproar at the time. It was, after all, most ungentlemanly ...

Answer: All of these

In fact, it sounds much more in keeping with the 'cult of games' that developed at British boys' boarding schools much later in the nineteenth century.

Answer: David Lloyd George

David Lloyd George said this towards the end of a speech on 9 October 1909 at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, delivered during the conflict between the Liberal government and the House of Commons on the one hand and the House of Lords on the other. This struggle culminated in a significant curtailment of the powers of the Upper House.

Answer: John Milton

It occurs in 'Areopagitica' (1644), where Milton argues vigorously against the reintroduction of pre-publication censorship.

Milton became something of a cult figure among English radicals in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries on account of his staunch republicanism.

Answer: William Gladstone

William Gladstone, on 28 June 1886 in Liverpool. In this context, 'classes' meant 'upper classes', and in Gladstone's Lancashire accent the words 'classes' and 'masses' rhymed, unlike in Southern English. (Whether Princess Diana quoted this approvingly is unclear).

Answer: Sir Edward Grey

Often quoted as 'The lights ...' Said on 3 August 1914 just over 24 hours before Britain's entry into WWI. Edward Grey, the Foreign Secretary at the time, was one of the few politicians who had an inkling that the war would be horrific and certainly not the 'jolly little war' that many expected.

Answer: Leo Amery

On 1 September 1939, the Nazis began their invasion of Poland. In Britain, some feared that the Prime Minister was trying to avoid Britain's treaty obligations to Poland. All these four MPs were staunch opponents of appeasement. In the event, Britain declared war on Germany on 3 September 1939. Clearly, Amery believed that the Prime Minister could *not* be relied on to 'speak for England'. All four MPs rose to high office: Duff Cooper became Minister of Information (1940-41) and was British Ambassador to France from 1944-47. Brendan Bracken took over from him as Minister of Information (1941-45). Amery himself became Secretary of State for India, 1940-45. Macmillan was Prime Minister, 1957-63. (Note, incidentally, that Amery said 'England', not 'Britain).

Answer: Sir Robert Walpole

In the eighteenth century, corruption of various kinds was common in British politics.

Answer: Immediately after the collapse of France

It came at the very end of a long speech to the House of Commons on 18 June 1940. The outlook didn't look good, but Churchill took an optimistic view. Snippets from four of his 1940 speeches are very widely quoted: (1) from this speech; (2) from his first speech as Prime Minister (13 May 1940) - 'blood, toil, tears and sweat' and 'Victory, victory, at any price'; (3) from a speech made on 20 August 1940 during the Battle of Britain - 'Never in the history of human conflict have so many owed so much to so few' and (4) another favourite for quotation is a speech made on 4 June 1940 - 'we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds ... We shall never surrender'.