Now arch. Forms: 4–5 veneri, -erye, 5–7, 9 venerie, 5 wenery, 5– venery; 4 venorye, 5 -ur(i)e, 7 -arie, 7–8 -ary. [a. OF. venerie (F. vénerie), f. vener:—L. venārī to hunt: see -ERY.]
1. The practice or sport of hunting beasts of game; the chase. Also attrib.
c. 1320. Sir Tristr., 296. On hunting oft he ȝede, To swiche a lawe he drewe … More he couþe of veneri Þan couþe manerious.
c. 1330. R. Brunne, Chron. Wace (Rolls), 856. To venerye he gaf his tent; An herde of hertes sone þey met.
1422. Yonge, trans. Secreta Secret., 247. Delite in honeste Play, and hit beholde, as … bestis to chase in venurie.
1486. Bk. St. Albans, e v b. That is the first worde, my sonne, of venery.
1577. Harrison, Descr. Brit., II. xv. They … daily ouerthrew townes, villages, and an infinite sort of families for the maintenance of their Venery.
1602. 2nd Pt. Return fr. Parnass., II. v. 893. These are your speciall beasts for chase, or as wee Huntsmen call it, for venery.
a. 1666. [see VENATICAL a.].
1719. Boyer, Dict. Royal, II. A venery Book, or Book of Venery.
1837. W. Irving, Capt. Bonneville, III. 122. These veterans of the wilderness are exceedingly pragmatical on points of venery and woodcraft.
1883. Standard, 4 May, 2/2. Other worthy professors of venery were glad to ‘coach’ him.
1891. J. G. Austin, Betty Alden, 110. ’Tis bad venerie when you have trapped a wolf to let him go free on the chance some other man will finish your work.
b. In the phrases beasts, game, hounds of venery.
c. 1400. Maundev. (Roxb.), xxiii. 105. All maner of wylde bestez of wenery, as hertez and hyndez.
1432–50. trans. Higden (Rolls), VI. 379. That place … havynge in hit diverse kyndes of bestes of venery.
c. 1450. Pol., Rel., & L. Poems (1903), 60. Howndes of venery coste more then they aveyle.
1539. Act 31 Hen. VIII., c. 5. A chace … for norisshinge, generacion, and feeding of beastes of venery and of fowles of Warren.
1563. Q. Eliz., Lett., in Abp. Parker, Corr. (Parker Soc.), 175. Keeper of park-houses, warrens, or other game of venerie.
1587. Harrison, Descr. Brit., II. xix., in Holinshed, 206/1. The beasts of the chase were commonlie the bucke, the roe, the fox, and the marterne. But those of venerie in old time were the hart, the hare, the bore and the woolfe.
1603. G. Owen, Pembrokeshire (1892), 266. These beastes of chace are not in estimacion soe royall as the former beastes of Venerye.
1760–72. trans. Juan & Ulloa’s Voy. (ed. 3), I. 436. Many beasts of venery, which feed on the straw or rush peculiar to those parts.
1765. Blackstone, Comm., I. 289. Forests are waste grounds belonging to the king, replenished with all manner of beasts of chase or venary.
† 2. Wild animals hunted as game. Also fig.
c. 1350. Will. Palerne, 1685. Hyndes & hertes,… bukkes and beris and oþer bestes wilde, of alle fair venorye þat falles to metes.
c. 1440. Ipomydon, 415. This lady to hyr mete gan gone, And of venery had hyr fille, For they had take game at wille.
1470–85. Malory, Arthur, X. lxxxvii. 568. In the meane whyle syr Tristram chaced and hunted at alle maner of venery.
1539. Elyot, Cast. Helthe, 29. The hunting of them [sc. deer] beinge not so pleasant, as the huntynge of other venery or vermyne.
1550. J. Coke, Eng. & Fr. Heralds, § 3. Parkes … full of venery, as hartes, hyndes, falow-dere, wylde bores, and wolves for noble men to course.
1590. Spenser, F. Q., I. vi. 22. To the wood she goes, to … seeke her spouse, that from her still does fly, And followes other game and venery.
1630. R. Johnson’s Kingd. & Commw., 115. Woods wonderfully abounding with venerie.
transf. 1550. Latimer, Serm. (1562), 114 b. They must haue swyne for theyr foode to make theyr veneryes or bacon of; theyr bacon is theyr venison.
† 3. A place where hunting-dogs are kept. Obs.–1
1653. Urquhart, Rabelais, I. lv. 242. The Venerie, where the Beagles and Hounds were kept, was a little farther off drawing towards the Park.
