drumhead court-martial

drumhead court-martial

n.

A court-martial held for the summary trial of an offense committed during military operations.

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[So called because it was sometimes held around a drumhead.]

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drumhead court-martial

n

(Military) a military court convened to hear urgent charges of offences committed in action

[from the use of a drumhead as a table around which the court-martial was held]

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

drumhead court-martial - a military court convened to hear urgent charges of offenses committed in action armed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine - the military forces of a nation; "their military is the largest in the region"; "the military machine is the same one we faced in 1991 but now it is weaker" court-martial - a military court to try members of the armed services who are accused of serious breaches of martial law