Patriot Sayings and Quotes

Below you will find our collection of inspirational, wise, and humorous old patriot quotes, patriot sayings, and patriot proverbs, collected over the years from a variety of sources.

Patriotism is about a desire for progress, not a yearning for repetition. Gina Barreca
True patriotism hates injustice in its own land more than anywhere else. Clarence Darrow
Loyalty to country always. Loyalty to government, when it deserves it. Mark Twain
Patriotism is voluntary. It is a feeling of loyalty and allegiance that is the result of knowledge and belief. A patriot shows their their patriotism through their actions, by their choice. Jesse Ventura
Patriotism is not endlessly bragging that out country is the best; rather it is wanting one's country to be the best that it can be and helping it to be that best, which is a very different matter. Robert Stam
Patriotism requires less and less of making the eagle scream, but more and more of making him think. Aldo Leopold
You'll never have a quiet world till you knock the patriotism out of the human race. George Bernard Shaw
If one's patriotism is merely instinctive it is irrational and irresponsible, and consequently a danger to one's country. Paul Monroe
Patriotism, is a superstition artificially created and maintained through a network of lies and falsehoods; a superstition that robs man of his self-respect and dignity, and increases his arrogance and conceit. Emma Goldman
Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all others because you were born in it. William Shakespeare
Patriot: the person who can holler the loudest without knowing what he is hollering about. Mark Twain
It is heroic to prepare for war with a tyrant power. Patriots will always win the admiration of mankind for daring to meet the bloodshed of battle for their country's liberty. But the patriot who is willing to go to that sacrifice will be the first to condemn the aimless and secret shedding of blood in time of peace. John Boyle O'Reilly
A true patriot does not confuse government with country. A patriot's loyalty is to his country, and loyalty to country requires holding government accountable. Paul Craig Roberts
Patriotism is not dying for one's country, it is living for one's country. And for humanity. Perhaps that is not as romantic, but it's better. Agnes Macphail
The difference between patriotism and nationalism is that the patriot is proud of his country for what it does, and the nationalist is proud of his country no matter what it does; the first attitude creates a feeling of responsibility, but the second a feeling of blind arrogance that leads to war. Sydney J. Harris
The greatest patriotism is to tell your country when it is behaving dishonorably, foolishly, viciously. Julian Barnes
Patriots must have the ideas and the tools so that we can recruit, sow the seeds of doubt, and take the fight to the enemy's safe place. Mike Klepper
The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. Thomas Jefferson
Patriots don't let their nation default. Gary Ackerman
Being a patriot doesn't mean prioritizing service to government above all else. Being a patriot means knowing when to protect your country, knowing when to protect your Constitution, knowing when to protect your countrymen, from the violations of and encroachments of adversaries. And those adversaries don't have to be foreign countries. Edward Snowden