military leader who has authority over an area (either as a delegate of the ruling government or as a member of a rebelling force)
Search Dictionary
Warlord Definition from Language, Idioms & Slang Dictionaries & Glossaries
warlord
n : supreme military leader exercising civil power in a region especially one accountable to nobody when the central government is weak
Noun
1. supreme military leader exercising civil power in a region especially one accountable to nobody when the central government is weak
(hypernym) military leader
Warlord Definition from Encyclopedia Dictionaries & Glossaries
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war. Today, the word has a strong connotation that the person exercises far more power than his official title or rank (if any) legitimately permits. Under feudalism, by contrast, the local military leader may enjoy great autonomy and a personal army, and still derive legitimacy from formal fealty to a central authority.
| See more at Wikipedia.org... |
