Black and Tans

British  

plural noun

1. a specially recruited armed auxiliary police force sent to Ireland in 1921 by the British Government to combat Sinn Féin

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Etymology

Origin of Black and Tans

name suggested by the colour of their uniforms and the Black and Tans hunt in Munster

Example Sentences

The force was composed of “members of both” his Auxiliaries and Black and Tans, who were “assigned to Palestine once their presence in Ireland was no longer deemed necessary.”

From Los Angeles Times

Not easy then to get the Black and Tans and the New Zealand All Blacks mixed up.

From BBC

While talking about a relative who had been an Irish rugby player, he mixed up the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team with the Black and Tans, a brutal British military unit that fought against rebel forces in the Irish war for independence.

From Washington Post

He will occasionally misspeak or fumble for words, as he has done for his entire political career — on Wednesday, during his trip to Ireland, he tried to refer to New Zealand’s national rugby team, the All Blacks, but instead called them the “Black and Tans,” which was the name of a brutal British paramilitary force.

From Washington Post

The term Black and Tans has pejorative connotations and refers to the uniforms the recruits wore during the fighting in Ireland a century ago.

From Washington Times