lettre de cachet

[le-truh duh ka-she]

noun, plural let·tres de ca·chet

[le-truh duh ka-she] /lɛ trə də kaˈʃɛ/. French.

a letter under the seal of the sovereign, especially one ordering imprisonment, frequently without trial.

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Examples from the Web for lettre de cachet

Historical Examples of lettre de cachet

Nevertheless Brienne endures it, launches no Lettre-de-Cachet against it.
The French Revolution
Thomas Carlyle
Sabatier swore that he would write to the Court for a sealed order (lettre-de-cachet) to shut up the Jacobin.
La Sorcire: The Witch of the Middle Ages
Jules Michelet
By virtue of this lettre-de-cachet; you see, madame, signed by the minister of police.
The International Magazine, Volume 2, No. 3, February, 1851
Various

British Dictionary definitions for lettre de cachet

lettre de cachet

noun plural lettres de cachet (lɛtrə də kaʃɛ)

French history a letter under the sovereign's seal, often authorizing imprisonment without trial

Word Origin for lettre de cachet

literally: letter with a seal

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012