TOW (& Answer)...

This week’s question was what is a martinet & where did the word originate?  A martinet is someone who is a strict disciplinarian.  The original martinet was Jean Martinet a lieutenant colonel in Louis XIV infantry.  To quote my source:

He was an autocratic drill master, known for sharp military efficiency and his insistence that his orders be carried out exactly to the last detail.  He drove his men to their limits, demanding maximum effort, and accepted nothing less than instant obedience and a polished performance.  His men were taught to ask no questions.

The question (& answer) were taken from p. 160 of A New Dictionary of Eponyms by Morton S. Freeman.  The book was published by Oxford University Press in 1997.