Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 days ago
The quote from the chess scene in Kingdom of Heaven (King Baldwin IV to Balian):
"A king may move a man, a father may claim a son, but that man can also move himself, and only then does that man truly begin his own game.
Remember that howsoever you are played or by whom, your soul is in your keeping alone, even though those who presume to play you be kings or men of power.
When you stand before God, you cannot say, 'But I was told by others to do thus,' or that virtue was not convenient at the time. This will not suffice. Remember that."
That's the famous part about kings and personal responsibility. The scene starts with the chess metaphor: "The whole world is in chess..."
The quote from the chess scene in Kingdom of Heaven (King Baldwin IV to Balian):
"A king may move a man, a father may claim a son, but that man can also move himself, and only then does that man truly begin his own game.
Remember that howsoever you are played or by whom, your soul is in your keeping alone, even though those who presume to play you be kings or men of power.
When you stand before God, you cannot say, 'But I was told by others to do thus,' or that virtue was not convenient at the time. This will not suffice. Remember that."
That's the famous part about kings and personal responsibility. The scene starts with the chess metaphor: "The whole world is in chess..."
