king's man

Noun

king's man (plural king's men)

1. A Loyalist during the American Revolution, or any supporter of the king.
   • The owner of the grist mill, Smith Bowen, was a patriot, but his father was thought to have Tory tendencies, and when they came to burn the mill he ran out waving his hands and crying, "Spare the mill for I am a King's man."1894, Daughters of the American Revolution Magazine, National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution, page 424
   • Moreover, his willingness to lodge British soldiers, and a free hospitality shown to British officers (among others who frequented his house was General Mackay, a relative, probably, of his wife) marked Mr. Murray as a King's man.1972, James Henry Stark, The Loyalists of Massachusetts And the Other Side of the American Revolution

   Synonyms:

   Loyalist

2. A customs officer, or other officer appointed by the English Crown.
   • […] "king's man" was a customs officer.1990, Sarah Gibbings, “The Tie: Trends and Traditions”, in Barron's, page 84
   • Either North or Cheney […] must have secured Arden's appointment to the lucrative post of king's customs officer for the port of Faversham […] From the first, Arden was, in the words of Lena Orlin, who has described these relations in compelling detail, "a king's man in Faversham."1997, Donald R. Kelley, David Harris Sacks, The Historical Imagination in Early Modern Britain: History, Rhetoric, and Fiction, 1500-1800, Cambridge University Press, page 152
3. (obsolete) A handkerchief or neckerchief with a yellow pattern on a green background.
   • The ‘Kingsmen’ they call the best handkerchiefs—those that have the pretty-looking flowers on them. Some are only worth 4d. or 5d., some’s not worth taking.1851, Henry Mayhew, London Labour and the London Poor, published 1861