1. a member of an 18th-century Croatian irregular military force known for brutal tactics
Usage: historical
2. a brutal or undisciplined soldier
Usage: archaic

Examples

• The pandours were feared throughout the Austrian territories during the War of Austrian Succession.
• Historical accounts describe the pandours as fierce but undisciplined fighters.
• The general compared the unruly mercenaries to pandours from centuries past.
• Croatian pandours served under Austrian command in the 1740s.
• The term pandour became synonymous with military brutality in 18th-century Europe.