Alexander Hamilton Quotes: Sources, Meanings & Themes
Browse quotations by Alexander Hamilton with named works, context notes, meanings and recurring themes.
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“Energy in the Executive is a leading character in the definition of good government.”
Meaning & context
Hamilton argues that effective republican government requires an executive capable of acting with enough unity, speed and responsibility to carry laws and public duties into effect.
Source details
The Federalist No. 70, reviewed against the Gideon-edition Wikisource transcription. Hamilton's 'Energy in the executive...' sentence introduces his constitutional case for executive unity, duration, support and competent powers; it remains eighteenth-century institutional argument rather than a timeless empirical rule about government.
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“To cherish and stimulate the activity of the human mind, by multiplying the objects of enterprise, is not among the least considerable of the expedients, by which the wealth of a nation may be promoted.”
Meaning & context
Hamilton argues that a wider variety of productive pursuits can encourage enterprise and contribute to national economic activity.
Source details
Final Report on the Subject of Manufactures, December 5, 1791, preserved by Founders Online / National Archives. The sentence appears in Hamilton’s argument for diversifying occupations and manufacturing activity. It is eighteenth-century political economy and policy advocacy, not current economic or investment guidance.
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“The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for, among old parchments, or musty records.”
Meaning & context
Hamilton argues that fundamental rights do not depend merely on locating an old charter or inherited documentary privilege.
Source details
The Farmer Refuted, February 23, 1775, preserved by Founders Online / National Archives. Hamilton makes the statement in a revolutionary-era pamphlet defending natural-rights arguments against Samuel Seabury. It is a historical political position and should not be treated as current constitutional or legal advice.