“It appears to me as odd to write to you of St. Peter's, as it would do to you to write of Westminster-abbey.”

— Horace Walpole, Letter to Richard West, from Rome (16 April 1740)

About Horace Walpole

1717 – 1797

English writer and politician, author of "The Castle of Otranto" and a prolific correspondent.

“The world is a comedy to those that think; a tragedy to those that feel.”

“It always amazes me, when I reflect on the women, who are the first to propagate scandal of one another.”

“If a passion for freedom is not in vogue, patriots may sound the alarm till they are weary.”

“He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”

“He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.”

Attribution note: Source disputed or unverified.

“The man who asks a question is a fool for a minute, the man who does not ask is a fool for life.”

“The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”