Even at the turning of the tide
What's the meaning of the phrase 'Even at the turning of the tide'?
The 'turning of the tide' is literally the change of the tide from incoming to outgoing, or vice-versa. Normally the phrase is used to denote some change from a previously stable course of events.
What's the origin of the phrase 'Even at the turning of the tide'?
From Shakespeare's Henry V, 1598:
Hostess:
Nay, sure, he's not in hell: he's in Arthur's bosom, if ever man went to Arthur's bosom. A' made a finer end and went away an it had been any christom child; a' parted even just between twelve and one, even at the turning o' the tide: for after I saw him fumble with the sheets and play with flowers and smile upon his fingers' ends, I knew there was but one way; for his nose was as sharp as a pen, and a' babbled of green fields.
See other - phrases and sayings from Shakespeare.