Question

“The rule of one lion is ever better than a hundred rats”. Who had proclaimed this statement?
A.Montesquieu
B.Voltaire
C.Mirabo
D.Napoleon Bonaparte

Answer 1

Hint: Voltaire was a French enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher famous for his wit, his criticism of Christianity especially the Roman Catholic church and his advocacy of freedom of speech, religion and separation of church and state.

Complete answer: Francois-Marie Arouet known by his num de plume Voltaire was a versatile and prolific writer born on 21 November 1694 in Paris and died on 30 May 1778 produced works in almost every literary form, including plays, poems, novels, essays, histories and scientific expositions. He wrote more than 20,000 letters and 2,000 books and pamphlets. He was also one of the first authors to become renowned and commercially successful internationally. He was an outspoken advocate of civil liberties, and he was at constant risk from the strict censorship laws of the catholic French monarchy.
The above-mentioned line ‘The rule of one lion is ever better than a hundred rats’ is one of the quotes written by him which basically means that he would rather obey someone superior to him rather obeying someone who is just as him. Voltaire had not supported democracy which is considered as a form of the government where people decide the ruler. He basically supported Monarchy. By the word lion, he preferred being ruled by one person.

Hence, the correct answer is option (B). Voltaire.

Note: Voltaire has given some more quotes which are as follows: -
- ‘Let us read, and let us dance; these two amusements will never do any harm to the world’.
- ‘Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers’.
- ‘Life is a shipwreck, but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats’.