forechain

From fore- +‎ chain.

forechain (plural forechains)

1. (nautical, usually in the plural) A chain securing the lower shrouds of the foremast.
   • 1924, Herman Melville, chapter 12, in Billy Budd‎^[1], London: Constable & Co.:

     "Slip into the lee forechains, Billy; there is something in the wind. […] "