Whether Shakespeare was aware of the use of trained eagles or not, we cannot say, but he has in
many cases employed hawking terms in connection with this bird:—
“That hateful duke,
Whose haughty spirit, winged with desire,
Will cost my crown, and, like an empty eagle,
Tire on the flesh of me and of my son!”
Henry VI. Part III. Act i. Sc. 1.
The meaning of the word tire is thus explained by falconers. When a hawk was in training, it was often necessary to prolong her meal as much as possible, to prevent her from gorging; this was effected by giving her a tough or bony bit to tire on; that is, to tear, or pull at.
“Even as an empty eagle, sharp by fast,
Tires with her beak on feathers, flesh, and bone,