--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The British soldier can stand up to…" description: "\"The British soldier can stand up to anything except the British War Office.\" — George Bernard Shaw" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/george-bernard-shaw-68_british_the-british-soldier-can-stand-up-to-anyt_2768798.png" --- # The British soldier can stand up to anything except the… ![“The British soldier can stand up to anything except the British War Office.” quote by George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/george-bernard-shaw-68_british_the-british-soldier-can-stand-up-to-anyt_2768798.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/george-bernard-shaw-68_british_the-british-soldier-can-stand-up-to-anyt_2768798.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/george-bernard-shaw-68_british_the-british-soldier-can-stand-up-to-anyt_2768798.png) > “The British soldier can stand up to anything except the British War Office.” [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The military obeys orders, but the bureaucracy resists accountability. **In simple terms:** Soldiers follow orders; the War Office avoids responsibility. Key Takeaway Hold institutions accountable to prevent abuse. Themes authority bureaucracy accountability Mood skeptical determined Type political critical When to use this quote - policy reform - public advocacy - historical analysis Key Concepts military ethics government oversight Questions to Reflect On - How can soldiers influence higher command? - What mechanisms ensure bureaucratic accountability? A Different Perspective Bureaucratic change is often slow and resisted. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [British](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/british/) [Office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/office/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Soldier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soldier/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [As a soldier, I stand ready to serve and protect and defend this country. 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Revolutionaries seized power in the cities of Munich, Hanover and Cologne. One regional German government after another was toppled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cross-giblin/all-germany-was-in-turmoil-revolutionaries-seized-power-in-the-cities/) James Cross Giblin ## More by George Bernard Shaw > [I love little children too but I don't cut off their heads and stick them in vases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-love-little-children-too-but-i-don-t-cut-off-their-heads-and-stick/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Blasphemy and sedition (meaning the truth about Church and State).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/blasphemy-and-sedition-meaning-the-truth-about-church-and-state/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In the arts of life, man invents nothing; but in the arts of death he outdoes Nature herself, and produces by chemistry and machinery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/in-the-arts-of-life-man-invents-nothing-but-in-the-arts-of-death-he/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“My religious convictions and scientific views cannot at present be more specifically defined than as those of a believer in creative evolution. 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Satisfaction is death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/as-long-as-i-have-a-want-i-have-a-reason-for-living-satisfaction-is/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The camera can represent flesh so superbly that, if I dared, I would never photograph a figure without asking that figure to take its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-camera-can-represent-flesh-so-superbly-that-if-i-dared-i-would/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [A man who is not a communist at the age of twenty is a fool. 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No thanks!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sade-adu/all-the-cliches-of-glamorous-sophistication-have-little-appeal-to-me/) [Sade Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sade-adu/) > [British Forces should be in a position to give back in a ten fold measure any attack that the Germans may attempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-banting/british-forces-should-be-in-a-position-to-give-back-in-a-ten-fold/) [Frederick Banting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-banting/) > [Although I don't have anything against people from other countries, the higher the influx into England the more the British identity disappears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/although-i-don-t-have-anything-against-people-from-other-countries/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It could be my British need for discipline that makes me admire the American appetite for freedom and passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-winwood/it-could-be-my-british-need-for-discipline-that-makes-me-admire-the/) [Steve Winwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-winwood/) > [While we like to think queueing is unique to British culture, the truth is that we are mere amateurs. 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