Leo Tolstoy, Tolstoy's account of an encounter with an unnamed Caucasian chief (2 February 1909); reported in New York World 'Tolstoi Holds Lincoln World’s Greatest Hero'', from an interview by Count S. Stakelberg https://storyoftheweek.loa.org/2010/02/tolstoi-holds-lincoln-worlds-greatest.html

But you have not told us a syllable about the greatest general and greatest ruler of the world. We want to know something about him. He was a hero. He spoke with a voice of thunder; he laughed like the sunrise and his deeds were strong as the rock and as sweet as the fragrance of roses. The angels appeared to his mother and predicted that the son whom she would conceive would become the greatest the stars had ever seen. He was so great that he even forgave the crimes of his greatest enemies and shook brotherly hands with those who had plotted against his life. His name was Lincoln and the country in which he lived is called America, which is so far away that if a youth should journey to reach it he would be an old man when he arrived. Tell us of that man.

— Leo Tolstoy

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "But you have not told us a syllable about the greatest general and greatest ruler of the world. We want to know something about him. He was a hero. He spoke with a voice of thunder; he laughed like the sunrise and his deeds were strong as the rock and as sweet as the fragrance of roses. The angels appeared to his mother and predicted that the son whom she would conceive would become the greatest the stars had ever seen. He was so great that he even forgave the crimes of his greatest enemies and shook brotherly hands with those who had plotted against his life. His name was Lincoln and the country in which he lived is called America, which is so far away that if a youth should journey to reach it he would be an old man when he arrived. Tell us of that man." in the context of "Leo Tolstoy, Tolstoy's account of an encounter with an unnamed Caucasian chief (2 February 1909); reported in New York World 'Tolstoi Holds Lincoln World’s Greatest Hero'', from an interview by Count S. Stakelberg https://storyoftheweek.loa.org/2010/02/tolstoi-holds-lincoln-worlds-greatest.html" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Abraham Lincoln" (Quotes about Lincoln: These are arranged alphabetically by author, followed by some of the more notable anonymous quotations about him.) 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.