John Bartlett (1820–1905). Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. 1919.
6526 Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 1807-1882 John Bartlett
| NUMBER: | 6526 |
| AUTHOR: | Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) |
| QUOTATION: | He has singed the beard of the king of Spain. 1 |
| ATTRIBUTION: | The Dutch Picture. |
| Note 1. Sir Francis Drake entered the harbour of Cadiz, April 19, 1587, and destroyed shipping to the amount of ten thousand tons lading. To use his own expressive phrase, he had “singed the Spanish king’s beard.”—Knight: Pictorial History of England, vol. iii. p. 215. [back] |