What is "war horse"

War \War\, n. [OE. & AS. werre; akin to OHG. werra scandal, quarrel, sedition, werran to confound, mix, D. warren, G. wirren, verwirren, to embroil, confound, disturb, and perhaps to E. worse; cf. OF. werre war, F. querre, of Teutonic origin. Cf. Guerrilla, Warrior.]

1. A contest between nations or states, carried on by force, whether for defence, for revenging insults and redressing wrongs, for the extension of commerce, for the acquisition of territory, for obtaining and establishing the superiority and dominion of one over the other, or for any other purpose; armed conflict of sovereign powers; declared and open hostilities.

   Men will ever distinguish war from mere bloodshed.
   --F. W. Robertson.

   Note: As war is the contest of nations or states, it always implies that such contest is authorized by the monarch or the sovereign power of the nation. A war begun by attacking another nation, is called an offensive war, and such attack is aggressive. War undertaken to repel invasion, or the attacks of an enemy, is called defensive.

2. (Law) A condition of belligerency to be maintained by physical force. In this sense, levying war against the sovereign authority is treason.

3. Instruments of war. [Poetic]

   His complement of stores, and total war.
   --Prior.

4. Forces; army. [Poetic]

   On their embattled ranks the waves return, And overwhelm their war.
   --Milton.

5. The profession of arms; the art of war.

   Thou art but a youth, and he is a man of war from his youth.
   --1 Sam. xvii. 33.

6. a state of opposition or contest; an act of opposition; an inimical contest, act, or action; enmity; hostility. ``Raised impious war in heaven.''
   --Milton.

   The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart.
   --Ps. lv. 21.

   Civil war, a war between different sections or parties of the same country or nation.

   Holy war. See under Holy.

   Man of war. (Naut.) See in the Vocabulary.

   Public war, a war between independent sovereign states.

   War cry, a cry or signal used in war; as, the Indian war cry.

   War dance, a dance among savages preliminary to going to war. Among the North American Indians, it is begun by some distinguished chief, and whoever joins in it thereby enlists as one of the party engaged in a warlike excursion.
   --Schoolcraft.

   War field, a field of war or battle.

   War horse, a horse used in war; the horse of a cavalry soldier; especially, a strong, powerful, spirited horse for military service; a charger.

   War paint, paint put on the face and other parts of the body by savages, as a token of going to war. ``Wash the war paint from your faces.''
   --Longfellow.

   War song, a song of or pertaining to war; especially, among the American Indians, a song at the war dance, full of incitements to military ardor.

   War whoop, a war cry, especially that uttered by the American Indians.

A war horse is a horse used for fighting, including light and heavy cavalry, reconnaissance, logistical support, or in individual combat.

War Horse or Warhorse may also refer to:

• War Horse (novel), a children's novel by Michael Morpurgo
  • War Horse (play), a stage adaptation of the book
  • War Horse (film), a film based upon the book, directed by Steven Spielberg
• Warhorse (British band), a British hard rock band
• Warhorse (American band), an American heavy metal band
• ''Warhorse '', an album released in 2012 by the Dutch band Picture
• War Horse (American football) or Bob Hill (1891–19??), professional football player
• HMH-465 or Warhorse, a USMC helicopter squadron
• Warhorse, a novel by Timothy Zahn
• Warhorse Studios, a Czech video game company
• Warhorse, a veteran soldier

War Horse is a children's novel by Michael Morpurgo. It was first published in Great Britain by Kaye & Ward in 1982. The story recounts the experiences of Joey, a horse purchased by the Army for service in World War I France and the attempts of young Albert, his previous owner, to bring him safely home. It formed the basis of both an award winning play (2007) and an acclaimed film adaptation (2011) by Steven Spielberg.

War Horse is a play based on the book of the same name by children's writer Michael Morpurgo, adapted for stage by Nick Stafford. Originally Morpurgo thought "they must be mad" to try to make a play from his best-selling 1982 novel; nonetheless, the play was a success. The play's West End and Broadway productions are directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris; it features life-size horse puppets by the Handspring Puppet Company of South Africa, with " horse choreography" by Toby Sedgwick.

War Horse is a 2011 American war drama film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay written by Lee Hall and Richard Curtis, adapted from Michael Morpurgo's 1982 novel of the same name set before and during World War I.

The film's cast includes Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson, David Thewlis, Tom Hiddleston, Benedict Cumberbatch, Eddie Marsan, Niels Arestrup, Toby Kebbell, David Kross and Peter Mullan. The film is produced by Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, and executive produced by Frank Marshall and Revel Guest. Long-term Spielberg collaborators Janusz Kamiński, Michael Kahn, Rick Carter and John Williams all worked on the film as cinematographer, editor, production designer, and music composer, respectively.

Produced by DreamWorks Pictures and released by Touchstone Pictures, War Horse became a box office success and was met with positive reviews. The film was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture, two Golden Globe Awards and five BAFTAs.