--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have always said, the first Whig was…" description: "\"I have always said, the first Whig was the Devil~\" — Samuel Johnson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/samuel-johnson-50_devil_i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-th_1673529.png" --- # I have always said, the first Whig was the Devil~ ![“I have always said, the first Whig was the Devil~” quote by Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/samuel-johnson-50_devil_i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-th_1673529.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/samuel-johnson-50_devil_i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-th_1673529.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/samuel-johnson-50_devil_i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-th_1673529.png) > “I have always said, the first Whig was the Devil~” [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He humorously claims the Whig party originated from the Devil, critiquing political origins. **In simple terms:** Whigs are likened to the Devil. Key Takeaway Question political narratives critically. Themes politics critique satire Mood skeptical analytical Type political philosophical When to use this quote - political debate - media literacy - historical analysis Key Concepts historical bias political rhetoric Questions to Reflect On - What assumptions do you hold about parties? - How can you verify political claims? A Different Perspective Satire may oversimplify complex histories. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) ## Related quotes > [Remember that Abraham Lincoln was a Whig far longer than he was a Republican. As a whole, the Whigs looked upon banks and corporations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-c-guelzo/remember-that-abraham-lincoln-was-a-whig-far-longer-than-he-was-a/) [Allen C. Guelzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-c-guelzo/) > [A Whig is properly what is called a Trimmer - that is, a coward to both sides of the question, who dare not be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/a-whig-is-properly-what-is-called-a-trimmer-that-is-a-coward-to-both/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [Lincoln was a modernizer, so to speak. He believed in economic development. As a Whig before the war he favored what we would call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-foner/lincoln-was-a-modernizer-so-to-speak-he-believed-in-economic/) [Eric Foner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-foner/) > [“Most American ideas were a part of the great tradition of the eighteenth-century common-wealthmen, the radical Whig ideology that arose from a series of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-middlekauff/most-american-ideas-were-a-part-of-the-great-tradition-of-the/) [Robert Middlekauff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-middlekauff/) > [The Whig interpretation of history ... is the tendency in many historians to write on the side of Protestants and Whigs, to praise revolutions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-butterfield/the-whig-interpretation-of-history-is-the-tendency-in-many-historians/) [Herbert Butterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-butterfield/) > [I have always been an old-line Henry Clay Whig.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-have-always-been-an-old-line-henry-clay-whig/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [I am neither a Whig nor Tory. My politics are described in one word and that word is England.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/i-am-neither-a-whig-nor-tory-my-politics-are-described-in-one-word/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Now one was either Tory or Whig; it was either dependence or independence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caesar-rodney/now-one-was-either-tory-or-whig-it-was-either-dependence-or/) Caesar Rodney > [The sickly, weakly, timid man fears the people, and is a Tory by nature. The healthy, strong and bold cherishes them, and is formed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-sickly-weakly-timid-man-fears-the-people-and-is-a-tory-by-nature/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The same political parties which now agitiate the US have existed through all time. And in fact the terms of whig and tory belong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-same-political-parties-which-now-agitiate-the-us-have-existed/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [We should not care much whether those thus united (against slavery) were designated 'Whig,' 'Free Democrat' or something else; though we think some simple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-greeley/we-should-not-care-much-whether-those-thus-united-against-slavery/) [Horace Greeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-greeley/) > [A Tory..., since the revolution, may be defined in a few words, to be a lover of monarchy, though without abandoning liberty; anda partizan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/a-tory-since-the-revolution-may-be-defined-in-a-few-words-to-be-a/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [The division into whig and tory is founded in the nature of men; the weakly and nerveless, the rich and the corrupt, seeing more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-division-into-whig-and-tory-is-founded-in-the-nature-of-men-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The parties of Whig and Tory are those of nature. They exist in all countries, whether called by these names or by those of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-parties-of-whig-and-tory-are-those-of-nature-they-exist-in-all/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The more I learn about the evolution of ideas, the more I have become aware that I am simply an unrepentant Old Whig-with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-more-i-learn-about-the-evolution-of-ideas-the-more-i-have-become/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) ## More by Samuel Johnson > [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [You can never be wise unless you love reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/you-can-never-be-wise-unless-you-love-reading/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [If our aim is to praise, we should forget to criticize; if our aim is to criticize, we should remember to praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/if-our-aim-is-to-praise-we-should-forget-to-criticize-if-our-aim-is/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [All theory is against free will; all experience is for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/all-theory-is-against-free-will-all-experience-is-for-it/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Had I learned to fiddle, I should have done nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/had-i-learned-to-fiddle-i-should-have-done-nothing-else/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [It is as foolish to make experiments upon the constancy of a friend, as upon the chastity of a wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-as-foolish-to-make-experiments-upon-the-constancy-of-a-friend/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Resolve not to be poor: whatever you have, spend less. Poverty is a great enemy to human happiness; it certainly destroys liberty, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/resolve-not-to-be-poor-whatever-you-have-spend-less-poverty-is-a/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [The basis of all excellence is truth: he that professes love ought to feel its power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-basis-of-all-excellence-is-truth-he-that-professes-love-ought-to/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Words are daughters of earth but ideas are sons of heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/words-are-daughters-of-earth-but-ideas-are-sons-of-heaven/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“The cherubim were never intended as an object of worship, because they were only the appendices to another thing. But a thing is then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-cherubim-were-never-intended-as-an-object-of-worship-because-they/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Nobody has the right to put another under such a difficulty that he must either hurt the person by telling the truth or hurt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/nobody-has-the-right-to-put-another-under-such-a-difficulty-that-he/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [That kind of life is most happy which affords us most opportunities of gaining our own self-esteem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/that-kind-of-life-is-most-happy-which-affords-us-most-opportunities/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [The time will come to every human being when it must be known how well he can bear to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-time-will-come-to-every-human-being-when-it-must-be-known-how/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) [Explore all 1,998 Samuel Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) ## More Devil quotes > [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/) Michael Arnold > [Alimony - the ransom that the happy pay to the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/alimony-the-ransom-that-the-happy-pay-to-the-devil/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“Beauty is not only a terrible thing, it is also a mysterious thing. There God and the Devil strive for mastery, and the battleground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/beauty-is-not-only-a-terrible-thing-it-is-also-a-mysterious-thing/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [You gonna take the case?" It's not a case. It's a missing person. Sort of." You're gonna have a devil of a time finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/you-gonna-take-the-case-it-s-not-a-case-it-s-a-missing-person-sort-of/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [Your head's like mine, like all our heads; big enough to contain every god and devil there ever was. Big enough to hold the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/your-head-s-like-mine-like-all-our-heads-big-enough-to-contain-every/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [And so it is, that both the Devil and the angelic Spirit present us with objects of desire to awaken our power of choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/and-so-it-is-that-both-the-devil-and-the-angelic-spirit-present-us/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Remember that Abraham Lincoln was a Whig far longer than he was a Republican. As a whole, the Whigs looked upon banks and corporations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-c-guelzo/remember-that-abraham-lincoln-was-a-whig-far-longer-than-he-was-a/) [Allen C. Guelzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-c-guelzo/) > [Wine is the first weapon that devils use in attacking the young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-jerome/wine-is-the-first-weapon-that-devils-use-in-attacking-the-young/) [St. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-jerome/) > [“I tend to agree with that little devil more and more these days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-casey/i-tend-to-agree-with-that-little-devil-more-and-more-these-days/) [Elle Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-casey/) > [This is the gift of your species and this is the danger, because you do not choose to control your imaginings. You imagine wonderful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/this-is-the-gift-of-your-species-and-this-is-the-danger-because-you/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [“The devil?” Jason heaved the tick over his shoulder like a collier with his sack. “Satan. The adversary. The enemy of the plan of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/the-devil-jason-heaved-the-tick-over-his-shoulder-like-a-collier-with/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [God never talks. But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/god-never-talks-but-the-devil-keeps-advertising-father-the-devil-does/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [If it was a sin for you to choose me . . . then I would go to the Devil himself and bless him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/if-it-was-a-sin-for-you-to-choose-me-then-i-would-go-to-the-devil/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist”—Charles Baudelaire “The second greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-baudelaire/the-greatest-trick-the-devil-ever-pulled-was-convincing-the-world-he/) [Charles Baudelaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-baudelaire/) [Browse all 4,283 Devil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have always said, the first Whig was the Devil~", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Samuel Johnson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-the-devil/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Devil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-the-devil/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/samuel-johnson-50_devil_i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-th_1673529.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/samuel-johnson-50_devil_i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-th_1673529.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/samuel-johnson-50_devil_i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-th_1673529.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have always said, the first Whig was the Devil~” — Samuel Johnson", "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": "Samuel Johnson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I have always said, the first...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-the-devil/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/i-have-always-said-the-first-whig-was-the-devil/#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 } } ] } ```