--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I would rather be ruled by one Lion than…" description: "\"I would rather be ruled by one Lion than a hundred rats.\" — Mark Arovet Voltaire" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/920/mark-arovet-voltaire-260132_lion_i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than_2973524.jpg" --- # I would rather be ruled by one Lion than a hundred rats. ![“I would rather be ruled by one Lion than a hundred rats.” quote by Mark Arovet Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/920/mark-arovet-voltaire-260132_lion_i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than_2973524.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/920/mark-arovet-voltaire-260132_lion_i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than_2973524.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/920/mark-arovet-voltaire-260132_lion_i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than_2973524.jpg) > “I would rather be ruled by one Lion than a hundred rats.” Mark Arovet Voltaire ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It is better to be ruled by a single strong leader (lion) than by many weak ones (rats). **In simple terms:** One strong ruler > many weak. Key Takeaway Prefer decisive leadership. Themes leadership strength authority animal metaphor politics Mood assertive political analytical Type Lion:1 Rats:1 Ruled:0 Lion Rats:0 Ruled Lion:0 When to use this quote - company management - government policy - team leadership - community organization Key Concepts centralized power collective weakness symbolic animal governance models Questions to Reflect On - What qualities make a leader truly strong? - How can groups avoid fragmented authority? A Different Perspective Strong leaders can become tyrannical. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Lion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lion/) ## Related quotes > [I rather be ruled by one lion than hundred rats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/princealanz/i-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than-hundred-rats/) Princealanz > [Celebrating historic triumphs is a favorite pastime for many Turks. Tales of how Turkic peoples emerged from Central Asia, crossed the steppes to Anatolia,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/celebrating-historic-triumphs-is-a-favorite-pastime-for-many-turks/) [Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/) > [“One who rules is ruled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-f-hodge/one-who-rules-is-ruled/) [T.F. Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-f-hodge/) > [Of course, women have long exercised influence behind the scenes. A few thousand years ago this drove Aristotle to distraction: 'What difference does it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/of-course-women-have-long-exercised-influence-behind-the-scenes-a-few/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) > [Nineteen-seventy-nine had been a year of American setbacks around the globe. Before the year began, Cuban troops were already roaming Angola, and a pro-Communist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/nineteen-seventy-nine-had-been-a-year-of-american-setbacks-around-the/) [Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/) > [We came to enjoy; we are being enjoyed. We came to rule; we are being ruled. We came to work; we are being worked.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/we-came-to-enjoy-we-are-being-enjoyed-we-came-to-rule-we-are-being/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [“Rulers craft stories, the ruled listen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amogh-swamy/rulers-craft-stories-the-ruled-listen/) [Amogh Swamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amogh-swamy/) > [For all his sourness, he was ruled by his heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrison/for-all-his-sourness-he-was-ruled-by-his-heart/) [Kim Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrison/) > [“Her mind was blank and her heart and body ruled. And those? They were his property.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cherrie-lynn/her-mind-was-blank-and-her-heart-and-body-ruled-and-those-they-were/) [Cherrie Lynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cherrie-lynn/) > [“As long as enough people can be frightened, then all people can be ruled. I am afraid that's how it works in a democracy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziad-k-abdelnour/as-long-as-enough-people-can-be-frightened-then-all-people-can-be/) [Ziad K. Abdelnour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziad-k-abdelnour/) > [For those of us who originally disagreed with ObamaCare and now disagree with the majority opinion of the SCOTUS, the challenge remains the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-beauprez/for-those-of-us-who-originally-disagreed-with-obamacare-and-now/) [Bob Beauprez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-beauprez/) > [I lost in my first ever 400m race, the event I almost ruled later.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milkha-singh/i-lost-in-my-first-ever-400m-race-the-event-i-almost-ruled-later/) [Milkha Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milkha-singh/) > [If the truth be told, we are a society that is dripping in racism. This is not in the least surprising. For the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-jacques/if-the-truth-be-told-we-are-a-society-that-is-dripping-in-racism-this/) [Martin Jacques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-jacques/) > [To be very clear, I have completely ruled out state funding for stadiums.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-greitens/to-be-very-clear-i-have-completely-ruled-out-state-funding-for/) [Eric Greitens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-greitens/) > [We are ruled by quotations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/we-are-ruled-by-quotations/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) ## More Lion quotes > [She'd read once that if you ran into a bear in the woods you should avoid eye contact and you shouldn't run away, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-ursu/she-d-read-once-that-if-you-ran-into-a-bear-in-the-woods-you-should/) [Anne Ursu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-ursu/) > [“When a wolf is hungry it befriends sheep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/when-a-wolf-is-hungry-it-befriends-sheep/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [“Flattery looks like friendship, just like a wolf looks like a dog.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-auliq-ice/flattery-looks-like-friendship-just-like-a-wolf-looks-like-a-dog/) [Oscar Auliq-Ice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-auliq-ice/) > [“(Quoting her friend Tom Black on an amateur hunter's injury:) "Lion, rifles -- and stupidity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/quoting-her-friend-tom-black-on-an-amateur-hunter-s-injury-lion/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [My first name was inspired by the character of Aslan, the lion in C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aselin-debison/my-first-name-was-inspired-by-the-character-of-aslan-the-lion-in-c-s/) Aselin Debison > [I'm in 'Madagascar 2.' I'm Testy the Lion. The franchise moves to Africa, and Bernie Mac is also in the film. I loved working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-lister-jr/i-m-in-madagascar-2-i-m-testy-the-lion-the-franchise-moves-to-africa/) [Tom Lister, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-lister-jr/) > [Throw me to the wolfs and I will return leading the pack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/any/throw-me-to-the-wolfs-and-i-will-return-leading-the-pack/) Any > [“Just like a kitten pretending to be a lion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiki-hamilton/just-like-a-kitten-pretending-to-be-a-lion/) [Kiki Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiki-hamilton/) > [Don't ask who's influenced me. A lion is made up of the lambs he's digested, and I've been reading all my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-gaulle/don-t-ask-who-s-influenced-me-a-lion-is-made-up-of-the-lambs-he-s/) [Charles de Gaulle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-gaulle/) > [The peasants of the Asturias believe that in every litter of wolves there is one pup that is killed by the mother for fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/the-peasants-of-the-asturias-believe-that-in-every-litter-of-wolves/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [When a captive lion steps out of his cage, he comes into a wider world than the lion who has known only the wilds.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukio-mishima/when-a-captive-lion-steps-out-of-his-cage-he-comes-into-a-wider-world/) [Yukio Mishima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukio-mishima/) > [“How much does an elephant weigh? ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhonda-patton/how-much-does-an-elephant-weigh/) Rhonda Patton > [After The Wizard Of Oz I was typecast as a lion, and there aren't all that many parts for lions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-lahr/after-the-wizard-of-oz-i-was-typecast-as-a-lion-and-there-aren-t-all/) Bert Lahr > [Until the lion learns to speak, the tales of hunting will be weak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-naan/until-the-lion-learns-to-speak-the-tales-of-hunting-will-be-weak/) [K'naan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-naan/) > [“An injured lion wants to know if he can still roar. It's about dignity and self-esteem, which isn't quite the same as vanity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-zaslow/an-injured-lion-wants-to-know-if-he-can-still-roar-it-s-about-dignity/) [Jeffrey Zaslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-zaslow/) [Browse all 1,875 Lion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lion/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I would rather be ruled by one Lion than a hundred rats.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Arovet Voltaire" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-arovet-voltaire/i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than-a-hundred-rats/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Lion" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-arovet-voltaire/i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than-a-hundred-rats/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/920/mark-arovet-voltaire-260132_lion_i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than_2973524.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/920/mark-arovet-voltaire-260132_lion_i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than_2973524.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/920/mark-arovet-voltaire-260132_lion_i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than_2973524.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I would rather be ruled by one Lion than a hundred rats.” — Mark Arovet Voltaire", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Mark Arovet Voltaire", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-arovet-voltaire/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I would rather be ruled by...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-arovet-voltaire/i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than-a-hundred-rats/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-arovet-voltaire/i-would-rather-be-ruled-by-one-lion-than-a-hundred-rats/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```