Also 5 Flemis, 5–6 Flemys, 6–8 Flemmish(e. [ad. MDu. Vlaemisch, (Du. Vlaamsch): see FLEMING1 and -ISH.]
1. Of or belonging to Flanders or its inhabitants. For Flemish ell, rider: see the sbs.
1488. in Ld. Treas. Accts. Scotl., I. 79. Item, fyftene Flemis ridaris.
1540. Act 32 Hen. VIII., c. 14. A piece of flemmishe mony called an Englyshe.
1614. Markham, Cheap Husb., I. iii. (1668), 33. The best Stallion to beget horses … for the Coach is the Flemish.
1703. Moxon, Mech. Exerc., 240. The best sort of these are brought from Holland into England, and are called Flemmish Pan-Tiles, we having such Tiles made here in England, but not so good.
1756–7. trans. Keysler’s Trav. (1760), II. 385. The hall is adorned with the statue of Alexander duke of Parma, who signalized himself in the Flemish wars; it is of marble, and was cut out of a fragment of one of the fine pillars which anciently belonged to the temple of Peace.
1865. Mrs. Palliser, Lace, vii. 99. The old Flemish laces are of great beauty; some of varied grounds.
b. absol. The Flemish language.
1727–41. Chambers, Cycl., Flemish, or the Flemish tongue, is that which we otherwise call Low-Dutch.
1881. Encycl. Brit. (ed. 9), XII. 85/2. Flemish or South Dutch, i.e., Belgian Dutch.
2. Resembling a Fleming in habits and behaviour.
1598. Shaks., Merry W., II. i. 23. What an unweighed behaviour hath this Flemish drunkard picked—with the devil’s name—out of my conversation, that he dares in this manner assay me?
3. Comb., Flemish account, an unsatisfactory account, one showing a deficit; Flemish bond (see BOND sb.1 13); Flemish brick (see quot. 1842); Flemish coil (see COIL sb.3 1); hence Flemish-coil v., to lay up (a rope) in a Flemish coil; Flemish eye, Naut. (see quot. 1867); Flemish fake, Naut. (see quot.); Flemish horse, Naut. a foot-rope at the yard-arms of topsail yards; Flemish point, stitch (see quots.).
1785. Grose, Dict. Vulg. Tongue, *Flemish account, a losing or bad account.
1790. Herbert, Typogr. Antiq., III. 1773. I am very much afraid my kind friend received but a Flemish account of his Caxtons.
1774. in Archæol. (1777), IV. 106. The *Flemish bond, which is the strongest as well as the oldest regular bond used in building.
1890. Rimmer, Summer Rambles Manch., 35. We have, of course, in the eastern counties the fine brickwork that is seen in Holland, with the red ‘Dutch’ bricks in ‘Flemish bond’ and the tall and elegant stack of chimneys.
1727–41. Chambers, Cycl., *Flemish Bricks.
1842. Gwilt, Encycl. Archit., Gloss., Flemish Bricks, a species of brick used for paving, whereof seventy-two will pave a square yard; they were originally imported from Flanders, are of a yellowish colour, and harder than common brick.
1841. R. H. Dana, Seaman’s Man., 106. French-fake.… This is called a *Flemish coil.
1878. W. C. Russell, Wreck of Grosvenor, ii. (1889), 11. Duckling was walking the poop, swearing now and again at a couple of ordinary seamen, whom he had set to work to *flemish-coil the ropes along the deck, for no other reason than that he might put as much work on them as he could invent—for this flemish-coiling was of no use under the circumstances, and is only fit for Sundays on passenger ships, when you want to please the ladies with ‘tidy’ effects, or when a vessel is in port.
1840. R. H. Dana, Bef. Mast, xxxv. 134. Add to all this labor, the neat work upon the rigging;—the knots, *flemish-eyes, splices, seizings, coverings, pointings, and graffings, which show a ship in crack order.
1867. Smyth, Sailor’s Word-bk., Flemish eye, a kind of eye-splice in which the ends are scraped down, tapered, passed oppositely, marled, and served over with spun yarn. Ibid. *Flemish Fake, a method of coiling a rope that runs freely when let go…. Each bend is slipped under the last, and the whole rendered flat and solid to walk on.
1841. R. H. Dana, Seaman’s Man., 105. *Flemish horse. An additional foot-rope at the end of topsail yards.
1882. Caulfeild & Saward, Dict. Needlework, *Flemish Point.—A Guipure Lace, also known as Point de Brabant. Ibid., *Flemish Stitch.—One of the Fillings in Honiton Lace.
