Barbed Steed
Preserved but no longer current.
A horse in armour. Barbed -should properly be barded\ it is from the Fr. barde, horse-armour. Horses* ** bards " were the metal coverings for the breast and flanks. And now, instead of mounting barbed steeds To fright the souls of fearful adversaries, He capers nimbly in a lady's chamber, To the lascivious pleasing of a lute.
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 “Barbed Steed” mean?
A horse in armour. Barbed -should properly be barded\ it is from the Fr. barde, horse-armour. Horses* ** bards " were the metal coverings for the breast and flanks. And now, instead of mounting barbed steeds To fright the souls of fearful adversaries, He capers nimbly in a lady's chamber, To the lascivious pleasing of a lute.
Is “Barbed Steed” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.