Dieu et mon droit

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“Dieu et mon droit” (God and my right)
Portobello Road Market
Portobello Road, Notting Hill
London, January 2003

“Dieu et mon droit (Old French), meaning ‘God and my right’, is the motto of the Monarch of the United Kingdom outside Scotland. 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 been used by Richard I (1157–1199) as a battle cry and presumed to be a reference to his French ancestry (indeed he spoke French and Occitan but knew only basic English) and the concept of the divine right of the Monarch to govern. It was adopted as the royal motto of England by King Henry V (1386–1422) with the phrase ‘and my right’ referring to his claim by descent to the French crown.” (Dieu et mon droit, Wikipedia)