Montesquieu:

If a republic is small, it is destroyed by a foreign force; if it is large, it is ruined by an internal imperfection.

— Montesquieu Early Modern

Separation of powers

The Spirit of the Laws, Book VIII, Chapter XVI: Of the Extent of a Republic

1748

Verification

Unverifiable

Found in 1 providers: grok

Cross Reference

1 source

"When a people is lazy, it attributes everything to fortune."

"The principle of despotic government is fear."

"Liberty is the right of doing whatever the laws permit."

"The less we are able to reflect, the more we are capable of passion."

"The tyranny of a prince is not so dangerous to the public welfare as the apathy of a citizen in a democracy."