posse comitatus
English
Etymology
From Late Latin posse comitātūs (“force of the county”, literally “power of the county”).
Noun
- (historical) The able-bodied men over 15 in a given county who can be summoned by the sheriff to help keep the peace, or arrest a felon; also a group of men so gathered. [from early 17th c.]
- 1849, Henry David Thoreau, Resistance to Civil Government:
- They are the standing army, and the militia, jailers, constables, posse comitatus, etc.
- (figuratively) Any band of men, especially armed or hostile.
- 1819, Lord Byron, Don Juan, section I:
- With him retired his ‘posse comitatus,’ / The attorney last, who linger'd near the door / Reluctantly […]
Derived terms
Further reading
- “posse comitatus”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
- Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “posse”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
posse comitatus on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
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