Nemo me impune lacessit

From Free net encyclopedia

Image:Scottish royal coat of arms.png Image:Ancient Scottish Arms.png

Nemo me impune lacessit (English: No-one wounds (touches) me with impunity) is the royal Scottish motto, used historically for the Kingdom of Scotland where it appeared on the Royal Arms of Scotland. Today it is the motto the monarch of the United Kingdom uses when in Scotland, and it appears on the Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom for use in Scotland.

A looser translation to English would be "No-one messes with me and gets away with it". Similarly, in Scots this is usually rendered as "Wha daur meddle wi me? ", which more literally means "Who dares meddle with me?"

It is also the motto of the Order of the Thistle, the Scottish chivalrous order, and of the Royal Scots, Scots Guards, and Black Watch regiments of the British Army. It will also be the motto of the new Royal Regiment of Scotland.

The motto appears as an inscription on the rim of the 1984 "Scottish" pressing of the British One Pound coin. This motto is referenced in the Edgar Allan Poe story "The Cask of Amontillado" (Poe was adopted by a Scottish merchant).

[edit]

Possible origin of the motto

According to legend, the "guardian thistle" has played its part in the defence of the ancient realm of Scotland against a night attack by the Danes, one of whom let out a yell of pain when he stepped on a prickly thistle, thus alerting the Scottish defenders. In the motto "No-one touches me with impunity" (Latin: "Nemo me impune lacessit"), "me" was therefore originally the thistle itself, but by extension now refers to the Scottish crown and the Scottish regiments which have adopted it.

[edit]