May the pens of the diplomats not ruin again what the people have attained with such exertions.

Blücher’s line contrasts the sacrifices of ordinary people—soldiers and civilians who endure hardship to win victories—with the postwar bargaining of statesmen. It voices a recurring fear in the aftermath of major wars: that negotiated settlements, drawn up “by the pen,” can squander hard-won gains, betray popular hopes, or restore the very conditions that led to conflict. The quote also implies a moral hierarchy: deeds and suffering in the field carry a legitimacy that diplomatic maneuvering may lack. As a sentiment, it fits a commander’s perspective at the end of a campaign, when military success must be translated into political outcomes beyond the army’s control.