household troops

American  

plural noun

1. troops guarding or attending a sovereign or a sovereign's residence.

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household troops British  

plural noun

1. the infantry and cavalry regiments that carry out escort and guard duties for a head of state

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Etymology

Origin of household troops

First recorded in 1705–15

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

household troops

In a recent book called Twentieth Century Socialism, the "household troops" made some startling admissions.

From Time Magazine Archive

At last the household troops, who had done such service at Steinkirk, were sent against this village; it was captured a third time, and this time it was held.

From William the Third by H. D. (Henry Duff) Traill

Twenty-five thousand household troops, it argued, should be sent up the Euphrates or up the Ganges or up something without delay.

From Winsome Winnie and other New Nonsense Novels by Stephen Leacock

The household troops of every nation are select men, and the most showy which the country can supply.

From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine — Volume 56, No. 345, July, 1844 by Various

Lifeguards, the British royal household troops, consisting of cavalry and infantry regiments.

From The Nuttall Encyclopædia Being a Concise and Comprehensive Dictionary of General Knowledge by P. Austin Nuttall