lettre de cachet

American  

[le-tr^uh duh ka-she] / lɛ trə də kaˈʃɛ /

noun

French.

lettres de cachet plural

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

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lettre de cachet British  

/ lɛtrə də kaʃɛ /

noun

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

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• lettres de cachet
  plural

Etymology

Origin of lettre de cachet

literally: letter with a seal

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lettre de cachet

When he was 16 his father secured a lettre de cachet for him, applied it two years later.*

From Time Magazine Archive

The enclosure was a famous place of refuge for insolvent debtors and political offenders, and sheltered Rousseau in 1765 when a lettre de cachet was issued for his arrest.

From The Story of Paris by Kimball, Katherine

There was no difficulty in obtaining this lettre de cachet, and the poor wretch was arrested and taken to the Bastille.

From Queens of the French Stage by Williams, H. Noel

Another, who seemed to have lost his reason in the sufferings of a long and drear captivity, was the Count of Solange, imprisoned by lettre de cachet during the reign of Louis XV.

From The Sword of Honor, volumes 1 & 2 or The Foundation of the French Republic, A Tale of The French Revolution by Sue, Eug?ne

But at Bordeaux he found that his preparations had been discovered and complained of by Lord Stormont, and that a lettre de cachet for his arrest was already issued.

From The International Monthly Magazine - Volume V - No II by Various