[f. SWASH v. + BUCKLER sb.2; hence lit. one who makes a noise by striking his own or his opponents shield with his sword.] A swaggering bravo or ruffian; a noisy braggadocio.
1560. Pilkington, Expos. Aggeus, ii. 89 (1562), 266. Too be a dronkarde, a gamner, a swashe-buckeler he hath not alowed thee one mite.
1593. Nashe, Christs T., Wks. 1904, II. 148. No Smithfield ruffianly Swashbuckler will come of with such harshe hell-raking othes as they.
1648. Jenkyn, Blind Guide, i. 14. He speaking more like a swash-buckler than a Bishop.
a. 1680. Butler, Charact., Hermetic Philos. Make those spiritual Swash-Bucklers deliver up their Weapons, and keep the Peace.
a. 1721. Prior, Dial. Dead, Charles & Clenard, Wks. 1907, II. 218. When ever You have Thought and Conquered with your Ruyters & Swashbucklers.
1809. W. Irving, Knickerb., VI. i. (1861), 184. He had a garrison after his own heart guzzling, deep-drinking swashbucklers.
1828. Scott, F. M. Perth, iv. Neither did his frank and manly deportment bear the least resemblance to that of the bravoes or swash-bucklers of the day.
1899. E. Gosse, Life J. Donne, I. 32. He shows himself a daring young swash-buckler of poetry.
attrib. 1620. Melton, Astrolog., 13. What a quarrelling Swash-buckler Mars.
1672. Marvell, Reh. Transp., I. 260. Men do cut and slash about vestments rather in a swash-buckler and Hectoring way, than like Christians.
1816. Singer, Hist. Cards, 238, note. The swash-buckler manners of the youth of fashion in the reign of Elizabeth.
1896. Gen. H. Porter, in Century Mag., LIII. Nov., 25/1. He [Gen. Grant] was pictured in the popular mind as striding about in the most approved swashbuckler style of melodrama.
Hence (nonce-wds.) Swashbucklerdom, -ism, -bucklery, the conduct of a swashbuckler; also Swashbucklering = SWASHBUCKLING a.
1862. Mrs. Speid, Last Years Ind., 91. A poor desiccated old man, with faded, filmy eyes, who had paraded before the examining officers with a sort of paralytic attempt at *swashbucklerdom and swagger.
1870. Cheshire Observer, 20 Aug., 6/3. [He] has taken himself and his *swash-bucklering into the army, and has joined the Zouaves.
1884. 19th Cent., Dec., 1023. The swash-bucklering and speculative fashion which the Republican supporters extolled.
1914. G. K. Chesterton, Flying Inn, xvi. 180. The skyline on every side was broken only by objects that encouraged such swashbucklering comedy.
1892. Review of Rev., 14 April, 360/1. Mr. Gladstone has been so sedulous an opponent of *swashbucklerism.
1889. D. Hannay, Life F. Marryat, 21. He would have condemned such a piece of frantic *swashbucklery as the last fight of the Revenge.