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"There must be a beginning of any great matter, but the continuing unto the end until it be thoroughly finished yields the true glory."

— Sir Francis Drake

There Must Be A Beginning Of

There must be a beginning of any great matter, but the continuing unto the end until it be thoroughly finished yields the true glory.

— Sir Francis Drake
determination glory perseverance

About this quote

Sir Francis Drake wrote this in a dispatch to Sir Francis Walsingham — Elizabeth I's principal secretary and spymaster — from Cape Sagres, Portugal, on May 17, 1587, immediately after his raid on Cadiz harbor, in which he destroyed approximately 30 Spanish ships and vast stores of provisions. The attack, which Drake described as "singeing the King of Spain's beard," delayed the Spanish Armada by at least a year, giving England crucial time to prepare its defenses. The letter is preserved in the Navy Records Society volumes and is one of Drake's few surviving personal communications.

Source

Letter to Sir Francis Walsingham, 1587

Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves.
— Sir Francis Drake
It doth even take my wits from me to think on it.
— Sir Francis Drake
Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wider seas where storms will show your mastery.
— Sir Francis Drake
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