die in harness
die in harness
Meaning
- to expire while working
- keep working to the end
- to pass away before retirement
Example Sentences
- She doesn't want to retire – she'd rather die in harness.
- I fear of dying in harness before I become a soldier.
- I want to retire now, I don't want to die in harness
- My grandfather was very hard working and brave and he died in harness.
- Who wants to die in harness? But I cannot stop working I like my job.
Origin
For origin of the phrase please refer to this comment by Jane Howard.
Its a reference to a ‘war horse”, when armies rode to war. A member of the military who dies while still in service dies “in harness”. A different way (poetic even) of saying the person was working up until his death and as horses are thought of as god's most noble creature, is a way of honoring him (or her). This naturally led to the term being used in other professions as well.
Example: Joseph Radetzky, a veteran of Marengo, Wagram and other smoky battles of the Napoleonic wars, was one of the military glories of the now defunct Austro-Hungarian Empire. He lived to be over 90 and died in harness. For years he fought the red-tape artists who taught that military science, like the Rock of Ages, never changed.
The measure of his success, as chief of staff and Field Marshal, may be found in the fact that during his lifetime Austria occasionally won a fight. After his death came the evil days; Austria was beaten by Louis Napoleon, by Bismarck, and, finally, in the World War. Francis Joseph, fated to rule the Austro-Hungarian Empire for some three-quarters of a century, was not born under a military star; he went forth to battle and he always- well, almost always- fell.
- Jane Howard January 15, 2017