Oliver Cromwell, letter to Walter Dundas, 12 September 1650; this is also a recent misattribution.
“
It will be found an unjust and unwise jealousy, to deny a man the liberty he hath by nature upon a supposition that he may abuse it.
— George Washington
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "It will be found an unjust and unwise jealousy, to deny a man the liberty he hath by nature upon a supposition that he may abuse it." in the context of "Oliver Cromwell, letter to Walter Dundas, 12 September 1650; this is also a recent misattribution." to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "George Washington" (Misattributed: Statements originally made by others, that have become wrongly attributed to Washington )
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed February 05, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
About George Washington
George Washington (22 February 1732 – 14 December 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Second Continental Congress as commander of the Continental Army in June 1775, Washington led Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War and then served as president of the Constitutional Convention in 1787, which drafted and ratified the Constitution of the United States and established the American federal government. Washington has thus been called the "Father of his Country".
About George Washington
George Washington (22 February 1732 – 14 December 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Second Continental Congress as commander of the Continental Army in June 1775, Washington led Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War and then served as president of the Constitutional Convention in 1787, which drafted and ratified the Constitution of the United States and established the American federal government. Washington has thus been called the "Father of his Country".
View all quotes →