Brewer's: Bilboes

A bar of iron with fetters annexed to it, by which mutinous sailors are linked together. The word is derived from Bilba'o, in Spain, where they were first made. Some of the bilboes taken from the Spanish Armada are still kept in the Tower of London.

Source: Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, E. Cobham Brewer, 1894
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