Abraham Lincoln, address before the Young Men's Lyceum, Springfield, Illinois (January 27, 1838); Roy P. Basler, ed., The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln (1953), vol. 1, p. 109.

All the armies of Europe, Asia and Africa combined, with all the treasure of the earth (our own excepted) in their military chest; with a Buonaparte for a commander, could not by force take a drink from the Ohio or make a track on the Blue Ridge in a trial of a thousand years.

— Abraham Lincoln on National security

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "All the armies of Europe, Asia and Africa combined, with all the treasure of the earth (our own excepted) in their military chest; with a Buonaparte for a commander, could not by force take a drink from the Ohio or make a track on the Blue Ridge in a trial of a thousand years." in the context of "Abraham Lincoln, address before the Young Men's Lyceum, Springfield, Illinois (January 27, 1838); Roy P. Basler, ed., The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln (1953), vol. 1, p. 109." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "National security" (Quotes: Sorted alphabetically by author or source) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed February 05, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Abraham Lincoln

About Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln, a self-taught lawyer and politician, steered the United States through its most tumultuous period, the Civil War. His unwavering commitment to preserving the Union and abolishing slavery forever altered the course of American history and enshrined him as a champion of equality and justice.