arabian was one
Preserved but no longer current.
The others were Byerley Turk, the charger of Capt. Byerley at the Battle of the Boyne, and Godolphm Arabian, brought to England in 1730 by Edward Coke, from whose hands he passed into the possession of the Earl of Godolphm.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “arabian was one” mean?
The others were Byerley Turk, the charger of Capt. Byerley at the Battle of the Boyne, and Godolphm Arabian, brought to England in 1730 by Edward Coke, from whose hands he passed into the possession of the Earl of Godolphm.
Is “arabian was one” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.