What’s the origin of the phrase ‘Stiffen the sinews’?
The expression ‘stiffen the sinews’ comes from the celebrated ‘Once more unto the breach’ speech, from Shakespeare’s Henry V, 1598:
Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;
Or close the wall up with our English dead.
In peace there’s nothing so becomes a man
As modest stillness and humility:
But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger;
Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood…