Chapter Cock of Westminster to Cole of C by Brewer's Readers Handbook

Cock of Westminster to Cole

Cock of Westminster (The). Castell, a shoemaker, was so called from his very early hours. He was one of the benefactors of Christ’s Hospital (London).

Cockade.

The Black Cockade. Badge of the house of Hanover, worn at first only by the servants of the royal household, the diplomatic corps, the army, and navy; but now worn by the servants of justices, deputy-lieutenants, and officers both of the militia and volunteers.

The White Cockade. (1) Badge of the Stuarts, and hence of the Jacobites. (2) Badge of the Bourbons, and hence of the royalists of France.

The White and Green Cockade. Badge worn by the French in the “Seven Years War” (1756).

The Blue and Red Cockade. Badge of the city of Paris from 1789.

The Tricolour was the union of the white Bourbon and blue and red of the city of Paris. It was adopted by Louis XVI. at the Hôtel de Ville, July 17, 1789, and has ever since been recognized as the national symbol, except during the brief “restoration,” when the Bourbon white was for the time restored.

Royal Cockades are large and circular, half the disc projects above the top of the hat.

Naval Cockades have no fan-shaped appendage, and do not project above the top of the hat.

(All other cockades worn for livery are fan-shaped.)

Cockaigne (The Land of), an imaginary land of pleasure, wealth, luxury, and idleness. London is so called. Boileau applies the word to Paris. The Land of Cokayne is the subject of a burlesque, which, Warton says, “was evidently written soon after the Conquest, at least before the reign of Henry II.”—History of English Poetry, i. 12.

The houses were made of barley-sugar and cakes, the streets were paved with pastry, and the shops supplied goods without requiring money in payment.—The Land of Cockaigne (an old French poem, thirteenth century). (See Cocagne.)

(This satirical poem is printed at length by Ellis, in his Specimens of Early English Poets, i. 83–95.)

Cocker (Edward) published a useful treatise on arithmetic in the reign of Charles II., which had a prodigious success, and has given rise to the proverb, “According to Cocker” (1632–1675).

Cockle (Sir John), the miller of Mansfield, and keeper of Sherwood Forest. Hearing a gun fired one night, he went into the forest, expecting to find poachers, and seized the king (Henry VIII.), who had been hunting and had got separated from his courtiers. When the miller discovered that his captive was not a poacher, he offered him a night’s lodging. Next day the courtiers were brought to Cockle’s house by under-keepers, to be examined as poachers, and it was then discovered that the miller’s guest was the king. The “merry monarch” knighted the miller, and settled on him 1000 marks a year.—Dodsley: The King and the Miller of Mansfield (1737).

Cockle of Rebellion (The), that is the weed called the cockle, not the crustacean.

We nourish ’gainst our senate The cockle of rebellion.
   —Shakespeare: Coriolanus, act iii. sc. 1 (1609).

Cockney (Nicholas), a rich City grocer, brother of Barnacle. Priscilla Tomboy, of the West Indies, is placed under his charge for her education.