Custom forms us all; our thoughts, our morals, our most fixed belief, are consequences of our place of birth – Aaron Hill
High birth is a gift of fortune which should never challenge esteem towards those who receive it, since it costs them neither study nor labor – La Bruyère
Verily, I swear, it is better to be lowly born, and range with humble livers in content, than to be perked up in a glistering grief, and wear a golden sorrow – Shakespeare
What is birth to a man if it shall be a stain to his dead ancestors to have left such an offspring? – Sir P. Sidney
When real nobleness accompanies that imaginary one of birth, the imaginary seems to mix with real, and becomes real, too – Greville