Knighthood Quotes

(on his knighthood being blocked by the Labour government for the second time in 1998) It`s purely political. I have never made any secret of my association, affiliation with the Scottish National Party. I don`t like the turn it`s taken now when they drag up something, which is something from the past about my violence towards women which I have attempted to answer in so many ways. It might have been a stupid comment of mine to say to smack a woman or slap a woman, I think I said, and it was picked up much later by an unmentionable in America who really worked a flanker and presented a show as though I had actually admitted that it was okay to punch women. In fact, in the near future there will be some kind of revelation about quite a lot of that anyway, which I`m not going to go into now.

I feel like I`ve been engaged to the British Empire since 1980 and tonight you have given me the ring knighthood.

On receiving an honorary British knighthood: You have permission to call me anything you want - except sir, all right? Lord of lords, your demigodness, that`ll do.

I found the offer of a knighthood something that I couldn`t possibly accept. I found it to be somehow squalid, a knighthood. There`s a relationship to government about knights.

(on being told he was being awarded an honorary knighthood) What an honor and what a surprise for a boy born in England, raised in Cleveland and schooled in vaudeville.

The preparatory education of candidates for knighthood was long and arduous.

Religion united its influence with those of loyalty and love, and the order of knighthood, endowed with all the sanctity and religious awe that attended the priesthood, became an object of ambition to the greatest sovereigns.