a nation or its affairs likened to a ship under sail.
Origin
1665-75
Examples from the web for ship of state
And so, the ship of state sinks while the members of the band argue over what music should be played.
More to the point, he seems determined to scuttle the ship of state rather than hand it over to the rebels.
They steer their own ship of state, and in doing so, they pray for wisdom.
From the round top of your ship of state, dark and threatening clouds may be seen.
We need regulatory reform, pension reform, and budget reform to begin to right our ship of state.
Under such harmonious auspices was launched the new federal ship of state.
We kept the ship of state afloat, but only by cutting important services and lightening the load.
It would not have a rudder to guide the ship of state.
To the extent that maize availability and affordability are jeopardized, so too is the ship of state.
Idioms and Phrases with ship of state
ship of state
The nation, as in We can't help but wonder who will be steering our ship of state a hundred years from now. This metaphoric expression was first recorded in English in a translation of Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince (1675).