Explore our new BookBrowse Community Forum!

Who said: "It is always darkest just before the day dawneth"

BookBrowse's Favorite Quotes

"It is always darkest just before the day dawneth."
Thomas Fuller, Pisgah Sight (1650), Book II, ch. 2


English Clergyman Thomas Fuller is considered one of the most witty and prolific authors of the 17th century. He was born in 1608, studied at Cambridge and was appointed to the Chapel Royal, Savoy in 1641 (a private chapel of the sovereign associated with the House of Lancaster, which remains a well-known London landmark to this day). He remained there for two years until Oliver Cromwell came to power, and Fuller (a monarchist) left for Oxford.

He returned to London in 1646 and wrote Andronicus, or the Unfortunate Politician, a satire against Cromwell. With the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 he was appointed chaplain-extraordinary to Charles II. During his life he published a number of works noted for their wittiness, anecdotes, epigrams, and puns, such as The Holy State, The Profane State and History of the Worthies of Britain - which was published by his son after his death in 1661.

Confusingly, there are two notable, quotable Thomas Fullers:
The Thomas Fuller quoted above (1608-1661) - an English preacher, historian, and scholar; and Thomas Fuller (1654-1734) - a physician, writer and collector of adages.

More Quotes

This quote & biography originally ran in an issue of BookBrowse's membership magazine. Full Membership Features & Benefits.

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket: Graveyard Shift
    Graveyard Shift
    by M. L. Rio
    Following the success of her debut novel, If We Were Villains, M. L. Rio's latest book is the quasi-...
  • Book Jacket: The Sisters K
    The Sisters K
    by Maureen Sun
    The Kim sisters—Minah, Sarah, and Esther—have just learned their father is dying of ...
  • Book Jacket: Linguaphile
    Linguaphile
    by Julie Sedivy
    From an infant's first attempts to connect with the world around them to the final words shared with...
  • Book Jacket
    The Rest of You
    by Maame Blue
    At the start of Maame Blue's The Rest of You, Whitney Appiah, a Ghanaian Londoner, is ringing in her...

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    Pony Confidential
    by Christina Lynch

    In this whimsical mystery, a grumpy pony must clear his beloved human's name from a murder accusation.

Who Said...

In youth we run into difficulties. In old age difficulties run into us

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

F the M

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.