History's Great Speeches Series

Five speeches from the legendary orators Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Cicero, and Pericles. 431 BCE: Pericles’ Funeral Oration is a valedictory and eulogy for the great age of Athenian democracy. Reported by Thucydides, it was given at the first annual public funeral for casualties of the Peloponnesian War. That war ended twenty-seven years later with the democratic government of Athens overthrown by an oligarchy known as The Four Hundred.  324BCE: Two speeches by Alexander the Great, reported by the historian Arrian in his Anabasis. Both speeches are a direct address to his army on embarking on a new campaign.  The first was given in Opis, Mesopotamia, when rallying his armies to start a new campaign into Persia. The army took heart, and successfully conquered the Persian Empire, adding it to Alexander’s many existing conquests. The second speech is given after the first campaign is over. This time Alexander is ready to move into the Indian subcontinent.  After travelling across the known world, the entire army took the offer to quit fighting and go home. This leaves Alexander understandably upset, and produces history’s most finely worded example of saying “After all I’ve done for you! Well, you can all get stuffed then, you bunch of ingrates. I hope you choke.” In 63BCE, the Cataline Conspiracy shook Rome. It was a deep shock to the Roman system, and risked civil war. Included here are speeches by the Consul Cicero and the only extant speech of Julius Caesar. Cicero’s First Speech is a rabble-rousing, impassioned, and slightly unhinged attack upon Cataline and his associates. It speaks to the outrage of the body politic and the masses. Caesar’s speech is a jurisprudential appeal to create no new laws to punish these crimes. Caesar argues that the republic would be ultimately harmed if they were not punished only under existing laws, as people remember the punishment but not the crime.

Six speeches about freedom and revolution from the American, French and Irish revolutions. The first two speeches are from the American Revolutionary war (1775-1783). Patrick Henry’s “Give me Liberty or give me death” is recognized even today, two centuries since Henry spoke at the Second Virginia Convention to an audience including Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. The speech is credited with providing troops from Virginia for the revolutionary war. In the Newburgh Address, Washington and implores his army to put their faith in him. A mutiny was proposed because Congress has not paid them as promised. Washington needed to make clear to his generals that there was no option to surrender or turn away to unsettled lands, and that he was with them and on their side in the thick of both war and politics. Next is William Wilberforce’s Abolition Speech to the British parliament in 1789, the apex of a campaign that led to slavery being outlawed across the British Empire. Speeches from the French revolution then follow. First, there is the reaction from the aristocracy in England; a valediction from Edmund Burke, an MP in the British Parliament, on the beauty of Marie Antoinette and his sadness at her passing. Four speeches follow by Maximilien de Robespierre, a foundational member of the French Revolution, who laid down the political philosophy of liberty and the moral law over divinity and customary law. The speeches are filled with a passion for direct democracy and the rule of the people, not the elites. The volume ends with a more measured, but no less impassioned, address by the Irish lawyer and statesman John Curran. It was given in Curran’s defence of Archibald Rowan, who was sentenced to transportation to Australia for his treasonous activities fighting for Irish independence. While unsuccessful, this rallying cry for genuine self-determination and free speech captures the heart of the conflicts that defined the era.

Mankind can rule itself without the force of top-down authority, and freedom is more than just choosing how to meet the needs and demands of capital. Inequality is structural and intentional, not inevitable and necessary.  It does not have to be this way. In solidarity, we are better. Think for yourself, and question authority. This is the essence of anarchism, which has a bad name and reputation because it attacks the necessity of centralised power and authority. The media archetype is Tyler Durden, filled with violence and nihilism – yet anarchism is the most positive of political philosophies, one that Jesus and Buddha both preached, stating that empathy and a rejection of authority were key to human flourishing. Neither would disagree with most early anarchists. Proudhon, whose “property is robbery” is perhaps the most well-known anarchist slogan, lays out the conceptual foundation for key anarchist ideas. He argues that usury (charging interest) is a fundamental harm to society, that there is enough for everyone if we simply take other values to be higher than capital gain, that mutualism is inevitable, and that all governments and ideologies make the same mistake, in trying to change society from the top. Positive change must arise from the great masses of humanity, not from their rulers. Bakunin's speeches are about solidarity arising from the masses, and the ground for a global reconfiguration. Louis Lingg was convicted to death with six others, for being one of the ‘Chicago Anarchists’. They were executed to make a political point, based on corrupted evidence and perjury. His statement is one of contempt for the powers that be, and his belief that mankind should be free and should fight until it is. We end with Kropotkin, who firmly believed in decentralized society. He believed that the greatest strength of mankind lies in the masses, not their rulers, and exhorts us to “Act for Yourselves”.

No discussion of the 19th Century is complete without Napoleon. We begin with Charles Phillips’ eulogy, summarizing the strangeness and contradiction of the most influential man of his time. Followed by 7 brief speeches by Napoleon himself. Two speeches chronicle the injustice and tyranny of British rule. Robert Emmet’s Speech From The Dock in 1803 is a classic of Irish Republicanism, given after sentence of death has been pronounced upon him for treason against the British. It is a speech intended for history, and sums up the fires that kept his homeland fighting for another century for their liberation.  O’Connell’s Justice For Ireland, given 33 years later, shows that the passion that drove Emmett remained in the Irish heart, given in a more measured and technical tone, but driven by the same certainty that only with freedom could justice be found for the Irish people.  Red Jacket’s speech contrasts the belief system of the Native Americans with that of the Christian invasion from Europe. It is paired with a speech about the hypocrisy of government and the selective application of the rule of law, Douglass’ speech given about slavery on the 4th of July (America’s independence day).  Following is Douglass’ most renowned speech, “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” This powerful statement of self-determination continues to resonate today.  Garrison’s speech on the death of John Brown is given after the Harper’s Ferry incident, which was the first event ever communicated by telegraph, and rang the starting bell for the American civil war. Next is a rousing speech from Italy by Garibaldi, calling mankind to arms in a new era of revolution and social change. Lastly a humorous speech from George Vest in tribute to dogs. After all, however dark the world seems, however much revolution and madness taint the air…we will always be blessed by the love and loyalty of our four-footed friends.

Five speeches from a millennium shaped by faith and empire. 632CE. In Muhammed’s farewell address, he lauds his people for their achievements and virtues, and gives them his final instructions for living within the faith. In 1095, Pope Urban II’s Against The Infidels speech launches the Crusades, which lasted for another two hundred years. In it the Pope exhorts his clergy to make true the promise of Christianity and rise against their weaker natures and the enemy in the east. Pico della Mirandola’s Oration On The Dignity Of Man has been described as “the manifesto of the Renaissance”, and is an introduction to his 900 Theses, which was the first printed book ever banned by the Church. Written in 1486, it weaves together philosophy and theology from across history and the world. While Christian, it is a review of the philosophies and religions of the ages. The first section details man’s supremacy over all other beings but God, due to his inherent mutability. The second section dives into the value of philosophy and theology, preparing a discussion of Christian magic and mystery. The final section explores a positive conception of Christian magic, placing it in ancient traditions of magic. In 1588, Elizabeth I’s speech rouses her forces against the Spanish Armada. The Armada came to conquer England and re-establish Catholicism as the state religion. The ensuing conflict is one of England’s great military victories. It includes the famous line “I know I have but the body of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart of a king, and of a king of England, too”. John Milton, Satan’s First Speech, Paradise Lost, 1667. We end the volume with a speech against faith and monarchy, which gives us the phrase “Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav'n.” Paradise Lost explores the limits of both divinity and monarchy, and marks the end of an age where the two combined to rule the world.

The birth of liberation movements in the C19th saw a rise in fighting for the rights of workers. William Morris believed decries the belief “not that Commerce was made for man, but that man was made for Commerce”, with the profit motive that renders all work miserable when “It is right and necessary that all men should have work to do which shall be worth doing, and be of itself pleasant to do; and which should be done under such conditions as would make it neither over-wearisome nor over-anxious.” Edward Carpenter demands of those whose only question is “Does It Pay?” to know why any action is undertaken. On starting a farm, he found, “that if I was happy in the life..., and if we were cultivating genuine and useful products… that it might really pay me better to get 1%, than 10% with jangling and wrangling.” Annie Besant attacks a reactionary appeal to the ‘natural’ role of men and women by pointing out that it is equality of opportunity and representation that women want. Eduard Bernstein confronts a misunderstanding that people still have today. Marx and Engels realized in their lifetimes that society was further away than they initially thought from a genuine socialism – that many small revolutions would be necessary, and that a single grand rewriting of society could not work. The next writer also refers to it, in saying that “A few.. only know what Socialism is, and they are Socialists. The rest are opposed to it because the little they know about it is not true.” Eugene Debs rails against the approach government takes in promoting “equality” between capitalist and labourer. We end with Debs' response to being sentenced to ten years imprisonment, for the crime of “opposing a social order in which it is possible for one man who does absolutely nothing that is useful to amass a fortune, while millions work all the days of their lives secure barely enough for a wretched existence. .”

The late 19th Century was a time of liberation. After the collapse of empires, people of all creeds demanded their equality. We begin with two speeches that represent the old order, by Bismarck. Between the two speeches he went from being Prussia’s last Minister President to being the Germany’s first Chancellor. A statesman in the oldest mold, he argues for nationalist dominance against forces temporal and religious. The counter is given by Sullivan, who excoriates the British government for the Zulu war, asking why the country supported wars of aggression in foreign lands. From there, we move to the liberation of nations and peoples. Louis Kossuth embodied Hungary’s struggle against imperial oppression, Castelar argues for a Spanish republic, and Gambetta for the education of the peasantry in France. Across Europe, a tide rose demanding the government serve the people rather than use them. In America, Lincoln defined the struggle between the Union and Confederacy as the start of universal emancipation and freedom for all men. In contrast, Chief Joseph’s speech drips with pathos, as he lays down his spear forever, desperate to find what is left of his massacred and desolate peoples in the wilderness. After the Civil War ends, Susan Anthony’s speech demands that women should have the vote, as guaranteed in the constitution for all citizens. A series of speeches by Swami Vivekananda follow, given at the first World’s Parliament of Religions. These speeches brought Buddhism and Hinduism into the Anglosphere, and began a trend of searching for spiritual liberation alongside the more material demands of the time. We finish on a lighter tone, as Mark Twain bemoans the decay of the art of lying. In an age of such seriousness, the tall tale fell out of fashion, and the simple joy of telling a fisherman’s tale was lost.

Six months ago, I had never heard the name Eugene Debs. Today, I believe he is one of the greatest orators in history, ranking alongside Napoleon, Robespierre, Lincoln, and Cicero. More importantly, he was a genuine hero, a man to believe in and follow into the fires of hell. His legacy has been unrightly ignored by the same powers that imprisoned and harassed him over his life. He should be an icon, but is unremembered, for reasons he himself goes into. However, there is one key difference between Debs and these other orators: every one of the others fought for empire, or glory, or democracy – but Debs fought for the working man’s right to a decent existence. A railroad man from 15, he founded then turned against the unions as they became tools of the owners, and won 3% of the presidential vote in 1920 despite being a) the Socialist candidate and b) in prison for sedition. The two major speeches missing from this volume can be found in the prior collection, being “You Railroad Men”, whose content is covered in other speeches herein, and “Statement to the Court”, which is summarised in part 4 of Scott Nearing’s analysis.

Martin Luther and John Calvin are household names, of a type where people have no idea about them other than knowing their importance in Christian thought and culture. It is surprising, therefore, how closely their language and concerns reflect modern times. Martin Luther was a rabble-rousing man of the people, filled with invective and the emotional force of connecting with humanity rather than culture or wealth. John Calvin’s sardonic sense of humour permeates a constant barrage of mythbusting that would do a modern-day fact checker proud. Three less well-known writers round out the collection. Zwingli, Melancthon and Savonarola all preach with a force befitting true Christians fighting against the vast powers of a Catholic church that was the most powerful entity in Europe, and had consolidated a wide range of practices that broke the people away from an experience of divinity. Savonarola speaks with the voice of a travelling preacher, a man of the people whose voice matched that of Eugene Debs. Zwingli spoke with a proud nationalism and pride that was wounded by the use of foreign armies, when the land could provide for all its citizens if managed correctly. Melancthon is an academic, providing a point-by-point deconstruction of the Pope’s claimed powers in ways that were irrefutable even for the Jesuit strains that held the Catholic Church’s intellectual force. Just as with the liberation fighters, socialists, and anarchists of previous volumes, these historical figures lived under great threat, attacking vast forces with little more than courage and the certainty of their beliefs. They stand as the bridge over the cultural change between the middle ages and the renaissance.

Demosthenes is generally acknowledged as the greatest orator in history. He overcame a stammer and the theft of his inheritance by his legal guardians to become as foundational to oratory as his contemporaries Plato and Aristotle are to philosophy. Much like a major contemporary political figure, he overcame a stammer on his journey to greatness, with “inarticulate and stammering pronunciation.” He was known as “a water drinker”; a stern and serious presence at all times. His great battle was against the waning of Athenian democracy, which slowly disintegrated into oligarchy and treason over his lifetime. As a legislator, ambassador, and leader he fought against the inexorable rise of Philip of Macedon and, later, Philip’s son Alexander. Fighting for the peace, democracy and equality that Athenian ancestors brought to all Greece, his tale ends in ruin as Athens finally falls, after more than thirty years trying to hold the line.  In historical terms, many of the patterns, descriptions and arguments presented here will seem eerily familiar, like listening to Songs In The Key Of Life for the first time. Every part of it has been reused a thousand times by people ever since its creation, so you are intimately familiar with the style, even if you have never come across it before. After a prestigious career of public service, the tide turned against him. An accusation of bribery leads to his most famous speech, On The Crown. This defense of his career as the tides turned against him has been described as “the greatest speech of the greatest orator in the world.” After his conviction, he escaped from prison and went on the run. He was exiled,  brought back, then sentenced to death; eventually, fleeing the city again, this time to the island of Kalaureia (modern-day Poros). Discovered by Archias, he asked for time to write a letter to his family, and took poison from a reed.

Introduction While compiling and narrating these speeches, I've often been struck by how easily they could be translated into a modern day context. Frequently, a speech has reminded me of the news of the day, somewhere in the world. Nowhere has this been more evident than in these speeches. Given over two thousand years ago, every single one could be applied to situations and people today with barely any revision. The late republic (from about 133BCE) was characterized by civil discontent, with three Servile Wars, two attempted coups, a Social War between Rome and Italian allies, and endless conflict. We begin in 110-106BCE with two speeches railing against the fixed social order and corruption of the highborn, as well as the scorn poured on those of lower birth. We then jump to the Cataline Conspiracy in 63 BCE, an attempt to overthrow the Senate that was only defeated at great cost, and continued to be a symbol of Rome’s troubles. Here we see Cataline exhorting his troops, Cato arguing for harsh punishment, C icero calling Cataline every contemptible name under the sun, and the only known speech of Julius Caesar, in which he argues for a sensible and jurisprudential response to this great crime. Cicero’s leadership of Rome is then documented, covering the beliefs and actions that saw him exiled and then returned to power by the Senate. Finally, we have Mark Antony’s hagiographic oration of Julius Caesar, and then two speeches of Cicero’s railing against the perversion of Caesar’s legacy that Mark Antony was putting into practice, and the need to hold onto tradition for the right reasons, not simply to cover the misdeeds of politicians. Antony became Consul in this time, and Cicero saw in him the final downfall of the republic, which lasted for only seventeen years after this moment before becoming an Empire.

History is often concentrated into short bursts of change, with long periods of shifting before and waves of alteration afterwards. Nowhere is this more obvious than the thirty year interregnum between the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution. In this period, three figures stand tall; Pitt, the elder stateman who saw the need for genuine constitutionalism; Burke, the consummate parliamentarian, speaking for the glory of empire; and Robespierre, the legendary and controversial frontman of the French Revolution. William Pitt The Elder speaks about the need for key changes to the body politic. The first speech here predates the interregnum, being from 1738, when he was merely thirty, and covers a key factor in Britain’s colonial problems for the next two centuries, being the complete internal corruption of the army. Edmund Burke represents the height of Royalist sympathy as the age of revolution gets underway. He speaks on the need for conciliation with America after the disaster of the Stamp Act and revolution, on the need to punish Warren Hastings for treating his Asian holdings as his own empire to fill with his own corruption, and on the end of an era with the passing of Marie Antoinette. Finally, the age of revolution, both industrial and political, has begun. Robespierre argues for the dignity of man; for rejecting the divinity of royal authority in favour of that of the human spirit; against the death penalty, as being below the dignity of a truly humanist state; on enemies, internal and external, who push the people to reject their own interests for those of the powerful. This is but a small selection of the man’s incredible output - in 1791 alone, he gave three hundred and twenty-eight speeches. Spitting bile and flame in his last speech, which closes this volume, Robespierre truly inaugurates the era when revolution against centuries-old powers brought their end, and their nations found their renewal.