drumhead court-martial

American  

noun

1. a court-martial held, usually on a battlefield, for the summary trial of charges of offenses committed during military operations.

---

drumhead court-martial British  

noun

1. a military court convened to hear urgent charges of offences committed in action

---

Etymology

Origin of drumhead court-martial

First recorded in 1825–35; so called from the use of a drumhead as a table during the court-martial

Example Sentences

A drumhead court-martial might have seemed tedious and technical in comparison with the sharp brevity of the trials under the ominous cottonwoods.

From Roosevelt in the Bad Lands by Hagedorn, Hermann

A drumhead court-martial is a hurried trial held in camp.

From The Great Round World and What Is Going On In It, Vol. 1, No. 25, April 29, 1897 A Weekly Magazine for Boys and Girls by Various

He was at once made a prisoner and marched as such to Walmer forest, when the commanding officer applied for a drumhead court-martial.

From A Soldier's Life Being the Personal Reminiscences of Edwin G. Rundle by Woodside, Henry J.

But for British magnanimity a drumhead court-martial should have taken the place of the hospitality of the Ceylon planters.

From The Great Boer War by Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir

Even th' rookies, what had seen a lot o' service, knowed that he was makin' himself liable—an' him a general—t' be called up on a drumhead court-martial.

From Injun and Whitey to the Rescue by Hart, William S.