A biography for Margaret MacMillanhasn’t been written yet.
“Nominally left- and right-wing populists differ primarily in their choice of which 'others' to exclude and attack, with the former singling out big corporations and oligarchs, and the latter targeting ethnic or religious minorities.”
“An apology offered and, equally important, received is a step towards reconciliation and, sometimes, recompense. Without that process, hurts can rankle and fester and erupt into their own hatreds and wrongdoings.”
“Some might argue humans are hard-wired to fight. I don't agree: we are conscious beings who have the capacity to make decisions.”
“The trouble with the First World War, for example, is that people think war was inevitable, but I don't agree. If you look at the Cold War, you could argue that a war was bound to happen between the Soviet Union and its allies and the United States and its allies, but it didn't.”
“The cubism of Braque or Picasso, the dissonant compositions of Schoenberg or Stravinsky, the free-flowing and often erotic choreography of Isadora Duncan and Nijinsky - these were acts of rebellion against the certainties and traditions of the old world.”
“Maintaining peace can be as strenuous as winning a war.”
“A large part of Canada heads for Florida, California, and Hawaii in the winter to get away from the snow.”
“Women throughout history have had to defy rigid conventions about what is and is not expected of them.”
“The word 'populism' was everywhere in 2016. Political leaders claiming to speak for the people have achieved significant victories in Europe, Asia, and, with the election of Donald Trump, the United States.”
“No one is always right.”
“Use it, enjoy it, but always handle history with care.”
“When I sat down to make a list of characters in history who exhibited curiosity, most were women. I thought it was sheer accident, and then I began to wonder.”
“If we don't take responsibility for each other, it seems to me the future is going to be even bleaker.”
“When I first read Barbara Tuchman's 'The Guns of August' in the autumn of 1963, it was as though history went from black and white to Technicolor.”
“The act of apology is something that most societies take very seriously indeed. It is an admission of wrong done to the victims and an acceptance of blame.”
“Canadians see the Americans as cousins. We love the same sports: Canadians are crazy about baseball and basketball, and our beloved game of hockey is played all over the U.S.”
“I wish we could see understanding the First World War as a European issue, or even a global one, and not a nationalistic one.”
“History does not produce definitive answers for all time. It is a process.”
“Climate change respects no borders.”
“I first read the 'Raj Quartet' in the early 1970s, when Paul Scott's decision to set his novels in the dying days of the British Raj in India seemed an eccentric choice, almost as though he did not want readers. The British were tired of their imperial past.”