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The Collaborative International Dictionary
Prize court

Prize \Prize\ (pr[imac]z), n. [F. prise a seizing, hold, grasp, fr. pris, p. p. of prendre to take, L. prendere, prehendere; in some senses, as 2 (b), either from, or influenced by, F. prix price. See Prison, Prehensile, and cf. Pry, and also Price.]

  1. That which is taken from another; something captured; a thing seized by force, stratagem, or superior power.

    I will depart my pris, or my prey, by deliberation.
    --Chaucer.

    His own prize, Whom formerly he had in battle won.
    --Spenser.

  2. Hence, specifically;

    1. (Law) Anything captured by a belligerent using the rights of war; esp., property captured at sea in virtue of the rights of war, as a vessel.
      --Kent.
      --Brande & C.

    2. An honor or reward striven for in a competitive contest; anything offered to be competed for, or as an inducement to, or reward of, effort.

      I'll never wrestle for prize more.
      --Shak.

      I fought and conquered, yet have lost the prize.
      --Dryden.

    3. That which may be won by chance, as in a lottery.

  3. Anything worth striving for; a valuable possession held or in prospect.

    I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
    --Phil. iii. 1

  4. 4. A contest for a reward; competition. [Obs.]
    --Shak.

  5. A lever; a pry; also, the hold of a lever. [Written also prise.]

    Prize court, a court having jurisdiction of all captures made in war on the high seas.
    --Bouvier.

    Prize fight, an exhibition contest, esp. one of pugilists, for a stake or wager.

    Prize fighter, one who fights publicly for a reward; -- applied esp. to a professional boxer or pugilist.
    --Pope.

    Prize fighting, fighting, especially boxing, in public for a reward or wager.

    Prize master, an officer put in charge or command of a captured vessel.

    Prize medal, a medal given as a prize.

    Prize money, a dividend from the proceeds of a captured vessel, etc., paid to the captors.

    Prize ring, the ring or inclosure for a prize fight; the system and practice of prize fighting.

    To make prize of, to capture.
    --Hawthorne.

Wikipedia
Prize court

A prize court is a court (or even a single individual, such as an ambassador or consul) authorized to consider whether a ship has been lawfully captured or seized in time of war or under the terms of the seizing ship's letters of marque and reprisal. A prize court may order the sale or destruction of the seized ship, and the distribution of any proceeds to the captain and crew of the seizing ship. A prize court may also order the return of a seized ship to its owners if the seizure was unlawful, such as if seized from a country which had proclaimed its neutrality.

Usage examples of "prize court".

Beyond a terse answer of 'Prize court' to MacKinnon's inquiry as to their destination, Blackie did not converse, nor did MacKinnon press him, anxious as he was to have information.

It was a question of trading with the enemy, and the Prize Court could be relied upon to adjudicate on the matter.

The first quarterly income from your estates on Grayson came in just about the time the prize court made its official award on those dreadnoughts you and Admiral Danislav captured in Hancock.

They had been whisked away to the prize court, sold and recommissioned into the King's service almost before die new ensigns had been hoisted.

There was no chance of treating them as prizes - with Malta in French hands the nearest prize court was in Gibraltar, a thousand miles away, and both vessels would be recaptured long before reaching it because the Mediterranean was now swarming with French and Spanish ships.