Green’s Dictionary of Slang

a rapier, a sword.

1654		Witts Recreations Epigram No. 543: Prethee who is that, That wears yon green feather in his Hat, Like to some Tilter? sure it is some Knight.
1688		T. Shadwell Squire of Alsatia II ii: Here’s a porker! here’s a tilter! Ha, ha! Oh how I could whip a prigster thro’ the lungs.
1691		N. Ward ‘The Poet’s Ramble after Riches’ in Writings (1704) 17: My Obsolete Accoutrements / [...] / I then put on, my Tilter Hanging.
c.1698		B.E. Dict. Canting Crew n.p.: Tilter a sword.
1725		New Canting Dict. [as cit. c.1698].
1734		C. Johnson Hist. of Highwaymen &c. 102: I [...] fled to the Watch, whither my greasy Carrier followed me with his rusty Tilter.
1754		G. Stevens ‘A Cant Song’ Muses Delight 177: As I derick’d along to doss on my kin / Young Molly the fro-file I touted, / She’d nail’d a rum codger of tilter and nab, / But in filing his tatler was routed.
1785, 1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
1809		G. Andrewes Dict. Sl. and Cant.
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1823		Egan Grose’s Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.