Honi soit qui mal y pense


Honi soit qui mal y pense is a maxim in the Anglo-Norman language, a dialect of Old Norman French spoken by the medieval ruling class in England, meaning "shamed be who thinks evil of it". Older translations state this as "evil be to him who thinks of evil".
It is the motto of the British chivalric Order of the Garter, the highest of all British knighthoods.

Origin

King Edward III founded the Order of the Garter around the time of his claim to the French throne. The traditional year of foundation is usually given as 1348.
According to Polydore Vergil's Anglica Historia, written in 1512–1513, 166 years after the event, the origin was a trivial mishap at a court function. King Edward III was dancing with Joan of Kent, his first cousin and daughter-in-law, at a ball held in Calais to celebrate the fall of the city after the Battle of Crécy. Her garter slipped down to her ankle, causing those around her to laugh at her humiliation. Edward placed the garter around his own leg, saying: "Honi soit qui mal y pense. Tel qui s'en rit aujourd'hui, s'honorera de la porter.". Scholars typically consider this version to be apocryphal, as there are no contemporary sources for it, and as garters were not worn by women at that time.
According to David Nash Ford:

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

The motto in Anglo-Norman, a dialect of Old Norman French spoken by the medieval ruling class in England, appears in the late 14th century Middle English poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight as hony soyt qui mal pence, at the end of the text in the manuscript, albeit in a later hand. The poem is connected to the Order of the Garter.
In the poem, a girdle, very similar in its erotic undertones to the garter, plays a prominent role. A rough equivalent of the Order's motto
has been identified in Gawain's exclamation corsed worth cowarddyse and couetyse boþe.
While the author of the poem remains disputed, there seems to be a connection between two of the top candidates and the Order of the Garter, John of Gaunt, and Enguerrand de Coucy, seventh Sire de Coucy. De Coucy was married to King Edward III's daughter, Isabella, and was admitted to the Order of the Garter on their wedding day.

Heraldic use

In English heraldry, the motto Honi soit qui mal y pense is used either as a stand-alone motto upon a motto scroll, or upon a circular representation of the Garter. Knights and Ladies of the Garter are entitled to encircle the escutcheon of their arms with the garter and motto.
The latter usage can also be seen in the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, with the motto of the royal arms, Dieu et mon droit, being displayed on a scroll beneath the shield. As part of the royal arms, the motto is displayed in many public buildings in Britain and colonial era public buildings in various parts of the Commonwealth. The royal arms appear on many British government official documents ; on packaging and stationery of companies operating under Royal Warrant ; and are used by other entities so distinguished by the British monarch.
Several military organisations in the Commonwealth incorporate the motto inscribed upon a garter of the order within their badges and some use Honi soit qui mal y pense as their motto. Corps and regiments using the motto in this fashion are :

Other uses