Oldcastle

[ ohld-kas-uhl, -kah-suhl ]

noun

1. Sir John (Lord Cobham), 1377–1417, English martyr: leader of a Lollard conspiracy; executed for treason and heresy; model for Shakespeare's Falstaff.

Oldcastle

/ ˈəʊldˌkɑːsəl /

noun

1. OldcastleSir John?13781417MEnglishPOLITICS: Lollard leader Sir John, Baron Cobham. ?1378–1417, Lollard leader. In 1411 he led an English army in France but in 1413 he was condemned as a heretic and later hanged and burnt. He is thought to have been a model for Shakespeare's character Falstaff in Henry IV

Example Sentences

Shakespeare's hostility to the Protestants induced him, we are told, to pour contempt on Oldcastle by depicting him as Falstaff.

From Project Gutenberg

The favour of the royal house was the more noteable that Oldcastle was known as "leader and captain" of the Lollards.

From Project Gutenberg

Oldcastle escaped, and for four years longer strove to rouse revolt after revolt.

From Project Gutenberg

On the eve of his departure he detected and quelled a plot as wild and futile as that of Oldcastle.

From Project Gutenberg

Oldcastle was by no means free from trouble during the reign of Richard II.

From Project Gutenberg