Johann Amadeus Franz von Thugut

“The ministry of Baron Thugut shows only an unbroken succession of blunders and false calculations. Sprung from the lower classes Thugut was educated in the Oriental Academy and trained for the subordinate service of the State. Skillful and cunning he owed the good luck of his political life to these qualities, which, aided by great talent for dissimulation and inclination to intrigue, pass current only too easily for real talent.”