Time-honoured Lancaster
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Old John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (about 1340-99), so called by Shakespeare (Richard //, i, 1) because his memory had been honoured by
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 “Time-honoured Lancaster” mean?
Old John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (about 1340-99), so called by Shakespeare (Richard //, i, 1) because his memory had been honoured by
Is “Time-honoured Lancaster” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.