--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Human rights did not begin with the…" description: "\"Human rights did not begin with the French Revolution...[they] really stem from a mixture of Judaism and Christianity...[we English] had 1688, our quie..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/margaret-thatcher-463_christianity_human-rights-did-not-begin-with-the-fren_1272124.jpg" --- # Human rights did not begin with the French… ![“Human rights did not begin with the French Revolution...[they] really stem from a mixture of Judaism and Christianity...[we English] had 1688, our quiet revolution, where Parliament exerted its will over the King...it was not the sort of Revolution that France's was...'Liberty, equality…” quote by Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/margaret-thatcher-463_christianity_human-rights-did-not-begin-with-the-fren_1272124.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/margaret-thatcher-463_christianity_human-rights-did-not-begin-with-the-fren_1272124.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/margaret-thatcher-463_christianity_human-rights-did-not-begin-with-the-fren_1272124.jpg) > “Human rights did not begin with the French Revolution...\[they\] really stem from a mixture of Judaism and Christianity...\[we English\] had 1688, our quiet revolution, where Parliament exerted its will over the King...it was not the sort of Revolution that France's was...'Liberty, equality, fraternity' - they forgot obligations and duties I think. And then of course the fraternity went missing for a long time.” [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that modern human rights evolved from religious traditions and a peaceful English constitutional shift, not solely from the French Revolution, and that liberty must be balanced with duty. **In simple terms:** Human rights stem from religion and English reform, not just French Revolution; liberty needs duty. Key Takeaway Balance freedom with responsibility. Themes politics history rights religion law Mood reflective critical Type analytical historical When to use this quote - parliamentary debates - human rights education - policy making - civic engagement Key Concepts social contract civil liberties constitutionalism Questions to Reflect On - How can societies ensure duties accompany freedoms? - What other traditions shaped human rights? A Different Perspective It may overlook the role of popular uprisings and other cultural influences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Duty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/duty/) [France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/france/) [Fraternity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fraternity/) [French revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/french-revolution/) [Human rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-rights/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Judaism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judaism/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) [Liberty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberty/) [Obligation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obligation/) [Parliament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parliament/) [Revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolution/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“So it might be speculated that the British exported their dissidents and so suffered their revolution three thousand miles away from home in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-c-w-blanning/so-it-might-be-speculated-that-the-british-exported-their-dissidents/) [Timothy C.W. Blanning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-c-w-blanning/) > [“He writes neither in the character of a Frenchman nor an Englishman, but in the fawning character of that creature known in all countries,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/he-writes-neither-in-the-character-of-a-frenchman-nor-an-englishman/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [The French Revolution gave us three... powerful ideas, or concepts - liberty, equality and fraternity. But these ideas... are not only right in themselves,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-barenboim/the-french-revolution-gave-us-three-powerful-ideas-or-concepts/) [Daniel Barenboim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-barenboim/) > [Liberté, égalité, fraternité. Liberty, equality, fraternity. Watchword of French Revolution. And bold and hard adventures t' undertake, Leaving his country for his country's sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-fitzgeoffrey/libert-galit-fraternit-liberty-equality-fraternity-watchword-of/) Charles Fitzgeoffrey > [It's not uncommon for revolutions to stem from a radicalized group just outside the circle of power. That's what the French Revolution was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hayes/it-s-not-uncommon-for-revolutions-to-stem-from-a-radicalized-group/) [Chris Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hayes/) > [It took us a long time to get rid of the effects of the French Revolution 200 years ago. We don't want another one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/it-took-us-a-long-time-to-get-rid-of-the-effects-of-the-french/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [I imagine that one of the biggest troubles with colleges is there are too many distractions, too much panty-raiding, fraternities, and boola-boola and all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-imagine-that-one-of-the-biggest-troubles-with-colleges-is-there-are/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [One little secret of the guys who have won one slam, is that we don't want other guys to win one because its like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-roddick/one-little-secret-of-the-guys-who-have-won-one-slam-is-that-we-don-t/) [Andy Roddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-roddick/) > [“Common right is nought but the protection of all radiating over the right of each. This protection of all is termed Fraternity. The point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/common-right-is-nought-but-the-protection-of-all-radiating-over-the/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“She knew instinctively: he will be fine as the fraternity boy just out of an Ivy League school who knows he will never stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/she-knew-instinctively-he-will-be-fine-as-the-fraternity-boy-just-out/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [Indian spirituality, proclaimed that the true Godhead was beyond number and count; that it had many manifestations which did not exclude or repel each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-swarup/indian-spirituality-proclaimed-that-the-true-godhead-was-beyond/) Ram Swarup > [Baseball is a game dominated by vital ghosts; it's a fraternity, like no other we have of the active and the no longer so,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-gilman/baseball-is-a-game-dominated-by-vital-ghosts-it-s-a-fraternity-like/) [Richard Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-gilman/) > [My mother worked as a maid, cleaning the fraternity dorm of the local college.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/my-mother-worked-as-a-maid-cleaning-the-fraternity-dorm-of-the-local/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [I would say my fraternity was nothing but a bunch of farm boys; we weren't really in the whole fraternity scene, but yeah, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/i-would-say-my-fraternity-was-nothing-but-a-bunch-of-farm-boys-we/) [Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/) > [David Rockefeller is the most conspicuous representative today of the ruling class, a multinational fraternity of men who shape the global economy and manage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-moyers/david-rockefeller-is-the-most-conspicuous-representative-today-of-the/) [Bill Moyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-moyers/) ## More by Margaret Thatcher > [When you stop a dictator, there are always risks. But there are greater risks in not stopping a dictator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/when-you-stop-a-dictator-there-are-always-risks-but-there-are-greater/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [Ideally, when Christians meet, as Christians do, to take counsel together, their purpose is not ( or should not be) to ascertain what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/ideally-when-christians-meet-as-christians-do-to-take-counsel/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [There are dangers in consensus: it could be an attempt to satisfy people holding no particular views about anything. ... No great party can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/there-are-dangers-in-consensus-it-could-be-an-attempt-to-satisfy/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [If it's me against 48, I feel sorry for the 48.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/if-it-s-me-against-48-i-feel-sorry-for-the-48/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [ \[When asked how it felt to be a female prime minister:\] I don't know: I've never experienced the alternative. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/when-asked-how-it-felt-to-be-a-female-prime-minister-i-don-t-know-i/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [It is sometimes said that because of our past we, as a people, expect too much and set our sights too high. 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I think it is a mixture of having a flair for the thing that you are doing; knowing that it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/what-is-success-i-think-it-is-a-mixture-of-having-a-flair-for-the/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [Personal virtue is no substitute for political hard-headedness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/personal-virtue-is-no-substitute-for-political-hard-headedness/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [The Government wants a peaceful settlement. But we totally reject a peaceful sell-out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/the-government-wants-a-peaceful-settlement-but-we-totally-reject-a/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [Major international interventions are doomed unless the US is directly or indirectly involved. 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Don't be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/we-have-made-too-much-of-one-or-two-people-and-we-think-that-they-can/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [I pay tribute to John Major's achievement in persuading the other 11 Community Heads of Government that they could move ahead to a Social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/i-pay-tribute-to-john-major-s-achievement-in-persuading-the-other-11/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) [Explore all 539 Margaret Thatcher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) ## More Christianity quotes > [Christianity was never meant to be defined by its disciplines, but by its passions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/christianity-was-never-meant-to-be-defined-by-its-disciplines-but-by/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/) [Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/) > [“God hates Hell. He hates the idea of people going there. He hates it so much that He was willing to take on human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-minton/god-hates-hell-he-hates-the-idea-of-people-going-there-he-hates-it-so/) [Evan Minton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-minton/) > [“some of my good Baptist brethren in Georgia had done a little preaching from the pulpit against the KKK, I would have a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-moss/some-of-my-good-baptist-brethren-in-georgia-had-done-a-little/) [Norman Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-moss/) > [I pray that wherever we are and whatever duties we have in the priesthood of God, we will be united in the cause to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/i-pray-that-wherever-we-are-and-whatever-duties-we-have-in-the/) [Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/) > [Why do Christians sing when they are together? 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