Black Rod
The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary · Walter A. Shumaker and George Foster Longsdorf; ed. James C. Cahill · 1922
The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary
GENTLEMAN USHER OF. A chief officer of the king, deriving his name from the black rod of office, on the top of which reposes a golden lion, which he carries. During the session of parliament he- attends on the peers, and to his custody all peers impeached for crime or contempt are first committed.