50 powerful Veterans Day quotes to thank, honor and remember veterans who have bravely and courageously served our country.
Veterans Day is observed each year on November 11 as a way to honor and thank America’s veterans for their dedication to service. It began as Armistice Day after World War I, but the name was changed to Veterans Day. President Eisenhower signed a proclamation that Nov. 11 honor veterans in 1954 and it was signed into law by President Ford in 1975.
Whether you’re seeking a way to honor the veterans in your life or looking for a meaningful way to celebrate the holiday, here are 50 powerful Veterans Day quotes to browse.
50 Powerful Veterans Day Quotes
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.” — General George S. Patton Jr.
“We sleep safely at night because rough men stand ready to visit violence on those who would harm us.” ―
“The soldier is the Army. No army is better than its soldiers. The Soldier is also a citizen. In fact, the highest obligation and privilege of citizenship is that of bearing arms for one’s country” ― General
“True patriotism isn’t cheap. It’s about taking on a fair share of the burden of keeping America going.” ― Robert Reich
“When the will defies fear, when duty throws the gauntlet down to fate, when honor scorns to compromise with death — that is heroism.” — Robert Green Ingersoll
“It takes a hero to be one of those men who goes into battle.” — General Norman Schwarzkopf
“The valor and courage of our young women and men in the armed services are a shining example to all of the world, and we owe them and their families our deepest respect.” — Bill Frist
“Honor to the soldier and sailor everywhere, who bravely bears his country’s cause. Honor, also, to the citizen who cares for his brother in the field and serves, as best he can, the same cause.” — Abraham Lincoln
“May we think of freedom, not as the right to do as we please but as the opportunity to do what is right.” — Peter Marshall
“Whenever the world makes you cynical; whenever you seek true humility, and true selflessness — look to a veteran.” — Barack Obama
“The patriot’s blood is the seed of freedom’s tree.” — Thomas Campbell
“A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” — Christopher Reeve
“A hero is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with his freedom.” — Bob Dylan
“One flag, one land, one heart, one hand, one Nation, evermore!” — Oliver Wendell Holmes
“Humanity has won its battle. Liberty now has a country.” — Marquis de Lafayette
“Bless the brave and courageous. We honor those that sacrificed their lives. Let us affirm now that in our future, such courage can be utilized to changing our world for the better and not for war. Thanking all the servicemen, women and K-9 that have given the ultimate sacrifice for your country.” ―
“Veterans are a symbol of what makes our nation great and we must never forget all they have done to ensure our freedom.” — Rodney Frelinghuysen
“On this Veteran’s Day, let us remember the service of our veterans, and let us renew our national promise to fulfill our sacred obligations to our veterans and their families who have sacrificed so much so that we can live free.” — Dan Lipinski
“Patriotism consists not in waving the flag, but in striving that our country shall be righteous as well as strong.” — James Bryce
“Honoring the sacrifices many have made for our country in the name of freedom and democracy is the very foundation of Veterans Day.” — Charles B. Rangel
“Brave men rejoice in adversity, just as brave soldiers triumph in war.” — Lucius Annaeus Seneca
“Without heroes, we are all plain people, and don’t know how far we can go.” — Bernard Malamud
“The soldier above all others prays for peace, for it is the soldier who must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war.” — Douglas MacArthur
“Better than honor and glory, and History’s iron pen, was the thought of duty done and the love of his fellow-men.” — Richard Watson Gilder
“Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.” —Billy Graham
“This country has not seen and probably will never know the true level of sacrifice of our veterans.” — Thomas M. Smith
“To those in uniform serving today and to those who have served in the past, we honor you today and every day.” — Unknown
“Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form or a readiness to die.” — G.K. Chesterton
“The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example.” — Benjamin Disraeli
“I can no other answer make but thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks.” — William Shakespeare
“Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.” — Sun Tzu
“The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave.” — Patrick Henry
“Our Veterans accepted the responsibility to defend America and uphold our values when duty called.” — Bill Shuster
“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” — John F. Kennedy
“True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.” — Arthur Ashe
“A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” — Joseph Campbell
“Valor is stability, not of legs and arms, but of courage and the soul.” — Michel de Montaigne
“For the veteran, every day is a bonus, an opportunity, a gift.” — Robert Kiyosaki
“Land of the free, because of the brave.” — Unknown
“I’ve lived the literal meaning of the ‘land of the free’ and ‘home of the brave.’ It’s not corny for me. I feel it in my heart. I feel it in my chest.” — Chris Kyle
“To sacrifice anything is of great honor. To sacrifice everything is of God.”―
“America without her soldiers would be like God without his angels.” — Claudia Pemberton
“Freedom makes a huge requirement of every human being. With freedom comes responsibility.” — Eleanor Roosevelt
“This nation will remain the land of the free only as long as it is home of the brave.” — Elmer Davis
“How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our Heroes and She-roes!” — Maya Angelou
“I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” — Nathan Hale
“The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it.” — Thucydides
“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear—not absence of fear.” — Mark Twain
“The willingness of America’s veterans to sacrifice for our country has earned them our lasting gratitude.” — Jeff Miller
“We don’t know them all, but we owe them all.” — Unknown
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