Semper fidelis
"Semper Fidelis" is Latin for "Always faithful." This phrase has served as motto or title for several entities, listed here in the order in which they are believed to have adopted it:
Families
The Lynch family of Galway
Semper Fidelis is the family motto of the Lynch Family. The Lynches were one of the Twelve Tribes of Galway, who were fourteen merchant families who dominated the political, commercial, and social life of the city of Galway in western Ireland between the 13th and 16th centuries. Members of the 'Tribes' were considered Old English gentry, and distinguished themselves from the Gaelic peoples who lived in the hinterland of the city. The Lynches were descended from William Le Petit who was one of the Norman knights who settled in Ireland following the grant of Ireland as a fiefdom by Pope Adrian IV to King Henry II of England in the early 12th century. Semper Fidelis appears on the Lynch Family coat of arms. Although the earliest traceable reference to its doing so is James Hardiman's history of Galway published in 1820, the history of the family makes it likely that the motto was in use by the 14th or 15th century.
Edge of Strelley
The Edge family of Strelley, Nottinghamshire, were using the motto "Semper fidelis" by, at the latest, 1814 (see UK National Archives document reference DD/E/209/32-34)
Cities
The City of Exeter
The City of Exeter, in Devon, England, is believed to have adopted the motto in 1588, to signify the city's loyalty to the English Crown. According to White's Devonshire Directory of 1850, it was Queen Elizabeth I who suggested that the city adopt this motto (perhaps in imitation of her own motto, Semper eadem, "Ever the same"). Her suggestion is said to have come in a letter to "the Citizens of Exeter," in recognition of their gift of money toward the fleet that had defeated the Spanish Armada; however the city archives do not hold this letter. John Hooker's map of Exeter of around 1586 shows the city's coat of arms without the motto, suggesting that the city's use of the motto is no older than this.
- The motto is also used by the Royal Navy warship HMS Exeter, which is named after the City of Exeter.
- There is a Masonic Lodge in Exeter, called "Lodge Semper Fidelis."
The City of Lwów
The words "Semper fidelis" were applied to the Polish city of Lwów (in Latin, "Leopolis"; now Lviv, in western Ukraine) in 1658 by Pope Alexander VII in recognition of the city's key role in defending Europe from Muslim invasion. That same year, the Sejm (parliament) of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth passed the Semper fidelis Poloniae ["Ever Faithful to Poland"] Act (as most people construed the Latin phrase).
Curiously, both Leopolis and Exeter, in addition to sharing the same motto, featured a three-turreted castle on their coats-of-arms. This is apparently a coincidence.
Today, in Poland, the motto is referenced mainly in connection with the Polish-Ukrainian War of 1919, following the collapse of Austro-Hungary in the wake of World War I, and more especially in connection with the Polish-Bolshevik War that followed.
In Ukraine, the phrase is much less used, in reference to the survival of the Ukrainian Church through the period of Soviet persecution.
St. Malo
"Semper fidelis" is the motto of the town of St. Malo, in Brittany, France.
Martial
Cadetcorps of the Dutch Royal Military Academy
Semper fidelis is also the motto of the cadetscorps from the Dutch Royal Military Academy. The corps was founded in 1879.
The Devonshire Regiment
The Devonshire Regiment of the British Army, the 11th of foot, adopted the motto "Semper fidelis" on its formation in 1881. The motto was already in use by at least some of the Devon militia units from which the regiment was formed, the Illustrated London News reporting its use on a cap badge in its 7th January 1860 issue, and it is thought that it had been in use for many years before that. The motto was continued on the badges of the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment when the Devonshires were amalgamated into them in 1958. This use of the motto evidently derives from the regiments' close connection with the city of Exeter, where they had a base for many years.
The United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps adopted the motto, Semper Fidelis in 1883, on the initiative of Colonel Charles McCawley (January 29 1827 – October 13 1891), the 8th Commandant of the Marine Corps.
There were three mottos prior to Semper Fidelis including "Fortitudine" (meaning "with courage") antedating the War of 1812, which was a nod to the British Royal Marines, "Per Mare, Per Terram" ("by sea, by land") and, up until 1843, there was also the motto "To the Shores of Tripoli". "Semper fidelis" signifies the dedication and loyalty that individual Marines are expected to have for "Corps and Country", even after leaving service. The Marines frequently shorten the motto to "Semper Fi."
- "Semper Fidelis" is also the title of the official march of the United States Marine Corps, composed by John Philip Sousa in 1889. Sousa was director of the United States Marine Band ("The President's Own") when a replacement for Hail to the Chief was requested, but later rejected. Sousa considered it to be his "most musical" march. It was prominently featured in the movie A Few Good Men. Lyrics to the march were written by Charles Burr and can be found on Wikisource. After Sousa's *"Stars and Stripes Forever"* it is considered his best hit
- On the United States Marine Corps Seal, the eagle of the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor emblem holds a ribbon emblazoned "Semper Fidelis".
- Semper Fi is the first book in the The Corps Series by W.E.B. Griffin.
- Semper Fi has also been quoted on various episodes of the TV series NCIS by the main character Leroy Jethrow Gibbs
U.S. 11th Infantry Regiment
Semper Fidelis is the motto of the U.S. 11th Infantry Regiment. The coat of arms in which it appears was approved in 1920.
The West Nova Scotia Regiment
Semper fidelis is the motto of The West Nova Scotia Regiment (of the Canadian Forces), formed in 1936. It inherited the motto from The Lunenburg Regiment, formed in 1870.
Swiss Grenadier Regiment
Semper fidelis is the motto of a Swiss Grenadier regiment formed in 1943.
Military Institute of Engineering, Brazilian Army
Semper Fidelis is the motto of the 1st company of the Brazilian Military Institute of Engineering.
Other
Plymouth Argyle Football Club
The English football club Plymouth Argyle use both the motto and the song, which is played as the team enters the pitch before the start of the game.
Lucerne section of the Swiss Student Union
The AV Semper Fidelis, a fraternity and the Lucerne Section of the Swiss Student Union, is the oldest Roman Catholic student society in Europe, existing without break since its foundation in 1843.
Honor Society of the Lambda Kappa Phi
"Semper fidelis" is the membership acceptance password of the Honor Society of the Lambda Kappa Phi at Manuel S. Enverga University Foundation, in Lucena City, Philippines. The exclusive brotherhood was founded on March 14, 1957. More info at www.hslkp.org.
Hagley RC High School
Semper Fidelis is the official motto of this Catholic school in Worcestershire, England, since 1958.
Hungarian Government Guard
Semper Fidelis is the official motto of the Hungarian Government Guard since 28 August 1998.
Senator Joe Doyl
In 1999, the Chief Herald of Ireland granted to Irish Senator Joe Doyle arms that include the motto "Semper fidelis."
Jericho
Semper Fidelis is the title of the fifteenth episode of Jericho, which aired in March 2007.
External links
- Hardiman's history of the town of Galway
- Exeter City Council site giving origin of Exeter's use of the motto.
- History of Exeter from White's Devonshire Directory of 1850
- Dutch Cadetscorps
References
- Lethbridge, Tony (2005). Exeter: a history and guide (Stroud, Gloucestershire: Tempus Publishing), ISBN 0-7524-3515-9