Coach (carriage)

A coach is a large closed four-wheeled passenger-carrying vehicle or carriage usually drawn by two or more horses usually controlled by a coachman occasionally accompanied by a postilion but always accompanied by footmen ready to handle unruly horses. A coach has doors in its sides and a front and a back seat inside. The driver has a seat in front raised up high to give good vision. It is often called a "box, box seat" or "coach box". The word coach came into use in the 15th century and spread across Europe. There are a number of types of coach depending on how the vehicle is to be used. Special breeds of horses, such as the now-extinct Yorkshire Coach Horse, were developed to pull the heavy coaches.
History.
Kocs was the Hungarian post town in the 15th century onwards, which gave its name to a fast light vehicle, which later spread across Europe. Therefore, the English word "coach", the Spanish and Portuguese "coche", the German "Kutsche", and the Slovak " koč" and Czech "kočár" all probably derive from the Hungarian word "kocsi", literally meaning "of Kocs".
It was not until 1580, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, that coaches were introduced to England. These were designed to be pulled by a pair of horses. In 1619 George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham introduced the coach and six horses.
Coaches were reputedly introduced into England from France by Henry FitzAlan, 19th Earl of Arundel.
A coach with four horses is a "coach-and-four". A coach together with the horses, harness and attendants is a "turnout".
The bodies of early coaches were hung on leather straps. In the eighteenth century steel springs were also used in suspension systems. An advertisement in the "Edinburgh Courant" for 1754 reads:
"The Edinburgh stage-coach, for the better accommodation of passengers, will be altered to a new genteel two-end glass coach-machine, hung on steel springs, exceedingly light and easy..."
Strap suspensions persisted, however; the 19th century American Concord coaches used leather straps exactly as the first Berline from 1660 did.
A coach might have a built-in compartment called a "boot", used originally as a seat for the coachman and later for storage. A luggage case for the top of a coach was called an "imperial"; the top, roof or second-story compartment of a coach was also known as an imperial. The front and rear axles were connected by a main shaft called the "perch" or "reach". A crossbar known as a "splinter bar" supported the springs. Coaches were often decorated by painters using a sable brush called a "liner".
In the 19th century the name coach was used for U.S. railway carriages, and in the 20th century to motor coaches.
See John Taylor (poet) for a very adverse opinion of the arrival of horsedrawn coaches in England.
Types.
There are a number of coach types, including but not limited to:
The principal ceremonial coaches in the United Kingdom are the Gold State Coach, Irish State Coach and Scottish State Coach.
Miscellany.
The business of a coachman, like the pilot of an aircraft, was to expertly direct and take all responsibility for a coach or carriage and its horses, their stabling, feeding and maintenance and the associated staff. He was also called a "jarvey" or "jarvie", especially in Ireland. 
If he drove dangerously fast or recklessly he was a "jehu" (from Jehu, king of Israel, who was noted for his furious attacks in a chariot (2 Kings 9:20), or a "Phaeton" (from Greek Phaethon, son of Helios, who attempted to drive the chariot of the sun but managed to set the earth on fire). 
A "postilion" or "postillion" sometimes rode as a guide on the near horse of a pair or of one of the pairs attached to a coach, especially when there was no coachman. A guard on a horse-drawn coach was called a "shooter".
Traveling by coach, or pleasure driving in a coach, as in a tally-ho, was called coaching. In driving a coach, the coachman used a coachwhip, usually provided with a long lash. Experienced coachmen never used the lash on their horses. They used the whip to flick the ear of the leader to give them the office to move on, or cracked it next to their heads to request increased speed. 
Coach horses.
A coach horse or coacher bred for drawing a coach is typically heavier and of more compact build than a road horse and exhibits good style and action. Breeds include: