Boots and Spurs

Posted by Joe on January 15, 2009 at 19:59

In Reply to: Boots and Spurs posted by Victoria S Dennis on January 11, 2009 at 11:44:

: : I'm looking for the meaning and origin of the military term "Boots and Spurs." I hope someone can help me.

: It isn't a military term. In the days of horse transport you needed riding boots and spurs to make a journey on horseback, so to be "booted and spurred" meant to be dressed and equipped for travel, whether you were a soldier or a civilian. You may be thinking of the phrase "boot and saddle", which is an order to cavalry to get their horses ready to mount and go; it is a corruption of the French "boute selle", meaning "put on the saddle". (VSD)

Yes dates to 1545

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The Army still uses such, and certainly at West Point, the "Boots and saddles call" was not the actual urgent call of Alarm "To Arms" or "To horse" that would proceed B&S in emergencies.

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