By what craft in my corps, it cometh [commences] and
where. --Piers
Plowman.
2. A body of men; esp., an organized division of the military
establishment; as, the marine corps; the corps of
topographical engineers; specifically, an army corps.
A corps operating with an army should consist of
three divisions of the line, a brigade of artillery,
and a regiment of cavalry. --Gen. Upton
(U. S.
Tactics. )
3. A body or code of laws. [Obs.]
The whole corps of the law. --Bacon.
4. (Eccl.) The land with which a prebend or other
ecclesiastical office is endowed. [Obs.]
The prebendaries over and above their reserved rents
have a corps. --Bacon.
{Army corps}, or (French) {Corps d'arm['e]e} (k[-o]r`
d[aum]r`m[asl]"), a body containing two or more divisions
of a large army, organized as a complete army in itself.
{Corps de logis} (k[-o]r` de l[-o]`zh[-e]") [F., body of the
house], the principal mass of a building, considered apart
from its wings.
{Corps diplomatique} (k?r d?`pl?`m?-t?k") [F., diplomatic
body], the body of ministers or envoys accredited to a
government.