evidence: FACT CHECK: Did Oliver Cromwell Say, ‘Not Only Strike While The Iron Is Hot, But Make It Hot By Striking’? An image shared on Facebook claims that British military leader Oliver Cromwell said, "Not only strike while the iron is hot, but make it hot by striking." [...] Quote Investigator traced the earliest close match back to a 1782 letter penned by founding father Benjamin Franklin to Welsh preacher and philosopher Richard Price. Franklin wrote, "And we now find that it is not only right to strike while the Iron is hot, but that it is very practicable to heat it by continual Striking." (RELATED: Did Benjamin Franklin Say This Quote About Avoiding Tyranny?)