Glossary for The Yeomen of the Guard

This glossary appeared in the program of the 1987 performance of The Yeomen of the Guard by The Gilbert & Sullivan Very Light Opera Company. Permission is hereby granted to use the material on this site for any purpose.

GLOSSARY (in order of occurrence)

Act I :

Tower of London - or simply, The Tower - refers to the complex of about 20 towers covering 18 acres, a fortress which in its history has housed the Royal Court, a prison, a menagerie, the Royal Mint and the Crown Jewels.
Yeomen of the Guard (Tower Warders) - Gilbert is guilty of some inaccuracies when he used these terms interchangeably, The Yeomen of the Guard were established by Henry VII in 1485 to serve as the Sovereign's personal bodyguard. The Yeomen Warders were set up in 1548 as guards (and now also serve as tour guides) of the tower. Popularly know as "Beefeaters," they are selected from non-commissioned officers and warrant officers on the basis of merit.
The Little Ease - a Tower dungeon cell wherein one could not stand or lie in comfort (a cube about 4 feet per side)
Tower Green - A grassy space within the Tower, site of special executions
Beauchamp Tower - (pronounced "beecham") - often used as a lodging for prisoners of rank
Cold Harbor Tower - no longer standing
Old Blunderbore - the giant in the fairy story "Jack and the Giant Killer" who grinds men's bones to make his bread
the screw may twist and the rack may turn - refers to tortures
a hundred crowns ... a thousand marks - old coins worth a quarter of a pound and two-thirds of a pound, respectively
give us quip and quiddity - witty remark and trifling point
love-lorn loon - man of low birth
peacock popinjay - an overly proud person
buy an electuary for her - a medicinal preparation made with sugar and honey
halbert or halberd - a 15th or 16th century weapon - pike or battle axe mounted on a long staff
standard lost - flag or banner

Act II :

consider each person's auricular - sense of hearing
solemn D.D. - Doctor of Divinity
a tail of cock and bull - an extravagant tale presented as if true
gyves - leg-irons, fetters
or I'll swallow my kirtle - woman's gown, shirt, or outer petticoat
an arquebus - early portable firearm
his twig he'll so carefully lime - refers to a method of catching birds by smearing twigs with a sticky substance (bird-lime)
kissing, clinging cockathrice - mythical serpent with a deadly glance

Last updated May 2, 1996.
A complete set of glossaries can be found in The Gilbert and Sullivan Glossary Collection .
For lots of information about G&S visit the Gilbert and Sullivan Archive Home Page