( gd, Ann an Dia no dhìon dìon mi) is the

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

of both the royal coat of arms of the

Kingdom of Scotland The Kingdom of Scotland (; , ) was a sovereign state in northwest Europe traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a l ...

and

royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom The royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, or the royal arms for short, is the arms of dominion of the British monarch, currently King Charles III. These arms are used by the King in his official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom. Vari ...

used in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. Contemporary versions of the royal arms show an abbreviated motto, in the form of ''in defens'' or, where

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

is used as an alternative, ''in defence''. The motto appears above the

crest Crest or CREST may refer to: Buildings *The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York *"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York *Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ...

of the arms, in the tradition of

Scottish heraldry Heraldry in Scotland, while broadly similar to that practised in England and elsewhere in western Europe, has its own distinctive features. Its heraldic executive is separate from that of the rest of the United Kingdom. Executive The Scottish he ...

Origins

Adopted during the reign of the

Stewart dynasty The House of Stuart, originally spelt Stewart, was a royal house of Scotland, England, Ireland and later Great Britain. The family name comes from the office of High Steward of Scotland, which had been held by the family progenitor Walter fit ...

, and certainly in use by the reign of

James IV James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauch ...

(1488–1513), was originally the only motto associated with Scotland's royal arms, with versions appearing in both truncated and abbreviated forms; , for example, having been adopted for the royal arms of James IV. (An

embroidered Embroidery is the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen on c ...

wall hanging depicting these arms is displayed in the Great Hall at Stirling Castle). Later versions of the arms which feature the abbreviated form include the armorial by Sir David Lyndsay of the Mount, which appears in his ''Register of Scottish Arms'' (1542). The motto is also associated with an old Scots prayer, of which there are several versions where ''In my defens God me defend'' appears as the opening line, including: And: Also, in the form of a couplet: Another variation of the phrase, appearing as , is to be found engraved upon a number of traditional Ballock knives, with one particular example (dated 1624) now forming part of the Arms and Armour collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.

''Nemo me impune lacessit''

Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (Scotland)

During the reign of Charles II (1660–1685), the royal arms used in Scotland were augmented with the inclusion of the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

motto of the Order of the Thistle, the highest

chivalric order An order of chivalry, order of knighthood, chivalric order, or equestrian order is an order (distinction), order of knights, typically founded during or inspired by the original Catholic Military order (religious society), military orders of the ...

of the Kingdom of Scotland. The motto of the Order of the Thistle, ''

Nemo me impune lacessit ''Nemo me impune lacessit'' (''No one provokes me with impunity'') () was the Latin motto of the Royal Stuart dynasty of Scotland from at least the reign of James VI when it appeared on the reverse side of merk coins minted in 1578 and 1580. I ...

'', appears on a blue scroll overlying the

compartment Compartment may refer to: Biology * Compartment (anatomy), a space of connective tissue between muscles * Compartment (chemistry), in which different parts of the same protein serves different functions * Compartment (development), fields of cells ...

. (Previously, only the

collar Collar may refer to: Human neckwear *Clerical collar (informally ''dog collar''), a distinctive collar used by the clergy of some Christian religious denominations *Collar (clothing), the part of a garment that fastens around or frames the neck ...

of the Order of the Thistle had appeared on the arms.) The addition by King Charles of ensured that the

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vi ...

of his royal arms used in Scotland complemented that of his royal arms used elsewhere, in that two mottoes were displayed. The blazon used elsewhere had included the French motto of the arms, ''

Dieu et mon droit (, fro, Deu et mon droit), which means "God and my right", is the motto of the monarch of the United Kingdom. It appears on a scroll beneath the shield of the version of the coat of arms of the United Kingdom. The motto is said to have first ...

'', together with the

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intellig ...

motto of the Order of the Garter, the highest chivalric order of the

Kingdom of England The Kingdom of England (, ) was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from 12 July 927, when it emerged from various History of Anglo-Saxon England, Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Kingdom of Scotland, ...

. The motto of the Order of the Garter, , appears on a representation of the

garter A garter is an article of clothing comprising a narrow band of fabric fastened about the leg to keep up stockings. In the eighteenth to twentieth centuries, they were tied just below the knee, where the leg is most slender, to keep the stocking f ...

surrounding the shield. Thenceforth, the versions of the Royal arms used in Scotland and elsewhere were to include both the motto of the arms of the respective kingdom ''and'' the motto of the associated order of chivalry.

Confusion

The rules governing heraldry and armorial achievements in England have possibly resulted in a degree of confusion as to the status of the mottoes associated with both the royal coat of arms of Scotland and those of the United Kingdom used in Scotland. In English heraldry the motto is placed beneath the shield, whereas in Scottish heraldry the motto is placed above the crest. Appearing beneath the shield may have led to the conclusion that ''Nemo me impune lacessit'' is the motto of the royal arms, whereas historical evidence coupled with the conventions of heraldry in Scotland would suggest that ''In my defens God me defend'' is the motto of the royal arms and therefore the motto of Scotland itself.

Usage

The motto ''In defens'' not only appears on the royal arms, but also, in conjunction with the crest of the Royal arms, upon the logo of both the

Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is the independent public prosecution service for Scotland, and is a Ministerial Department of the Scottish Government. The department is headed by His Majesty's Lord Advocate, who under the ...

and the

General Register Office for Scotland The General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) ( gd, Oifis Choitcheann a' Chlàraidh na h-Alba) was a non-ministerial directorate of the Scottish Government that administered the registration of births, deaths, marriages, divorces and adopti ...

References

External links

Arms on publication dated 1606 showing full mottoWood carving of arms of Mary, Queen of Scots, showing full motto
{{Coats of arms of Europe Scottish monarchy British monarchy

National symbols of Scotland National symbols of the United Kingdom National mottos