"Unity makes strength" [n 1] is a motto that has been used by various states and entities throughout history. It is used by Belgium, Bulgaria, Haiti, Malaysia and Georgia on their coats of arms and is the national motto of Belgium, Bolivia, Malaysia, Georgia and Bulgaria.
The phrase was first used as national motto by the Dutch Republic. However its use predates the republic's independence, appearing for example as part of mottos and proverbs known as Gemeene Duytsche Spreekwoorden, which was published in 1550, back when the place was under the Habsburg empire of Charles V, which ruled over modern day Netherlands and Belgium. This was derived originally from a Greek phrase (ἰσχύς ἐν τῇ ἕνώσει, ischýs en tē enṓsei, lit. 'power lies in unity') attributed to Homer, dating to roughly 850 BC,[ citation needed ] that later appears similarly in the Latin phrase concordia res parvae crescunt ("small things flourish by concord"), which was used in the Bellum Jugurthinum of Roman Republican writer Sallust. [1]
The similar moral of the Aesopic fable "The Old Man and his Sons" has been rendered in various related ways: "All power is weak unless united" (1668), [2] "Unity makes strength, strife wastes" (1685), [3] "Strength lies in union" (1867), [4] "Strength is in unity" (1887), [5] "Unity is strength" (title), "Union gives strength" (moral) (1894), [6] "Union is strength" (1912), [7] "In unity is strength" (1919); [8] although older versions are more specific: "Brotherly love is the greatest good in life and often lifts the humble higher" (2nd century), [9] "Just as concord supplies potency in human affairs, so a quarrelsome life deprives people of their strength" (16th century). [10]
The Iliad 13:237 has συμφερτὴ δ' ἀρετὴ πέλει ἀνδρῶν καὶ μάλα λυγρῶν 'even weak men have strength in unity'. [11]
One Latin version is vis unita fortior 'force united is stronger'. [11] It was the original state motto of New Hampshire.
The motto was used by Belgium after its Revolution of 1830, initially only in its French form "L'union fait la force". Only when Dutch was made equal in status to French did the Belgian state also take "Eendracht maakt macht" as its motto, sometimes with the variant "Eenheid baart macht". In 1830, this unity was identified with the unification of Belgium's nine provinces, whose nine provincial coats of arms are represented on the national arms, and the new country's unification of its liberal progressives and Catholic conservatives. Indeed, it was launched in 1827–1828 by newspapers published in Liège, which allied liberals and Catholics in the unionism which brought about the revolution and which then dominated Belgian politics until the founding of the Liberal Party in 1846. Although the motto is often used in Belgicist or unitarist circles (as a call to Flemings and Walloons, natives of Brussels and German speakers, all to maintain Belgium's unity), this is a historical misinterpretation;[ citation needed ] the motto is a unionist – not a unitarist – slogan. Its German version is "Einigkeit macht stark".
Following the Bulgarian unification and after Ferdinand of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha took over the throne of the Principality of Bulgaria, the country adopted the motto (Bulgarian : Съединението прави силата, romanized: Sŭedinenieto pravi silata) - Unity makes strength. It was the country's motto until 1948. After the fall of the People's Republic of Bulgaria and the end of Communist rule in the 1990s, the parties debated what should be the country's new coat of arms, deciding on a modified version of its former royal coat of arms. However, the Bulgarian motto also represents the legendary last words of khan Kubrat, the founder of Old Great Bulgaria in 632 AD, and is likely rooted much earlier in Bulgarian symbolics than in other European states. [12]
At the second national convention of Acadians in 1884, "L'union fait la force" was chosen as the national motto of Acadia and appeared in the coat of arms of Société nationale de l'Acadie in 1995. [13]
Dzala ertobashia (Georgian :ძალა ერთობაშია, "strength is in unity") is the official motto of Georgia.
One of the oldest uses of the term written in the French language, is known since 1807, on Haiti's national coat of arms bearing the motto, "L'union fait la force". Although, it should not be confused with the national motto of Haiti, which according to the Constitution of Haiti is "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity." [14] [15]
The coat of arms of the Federation of Malaya (present day Peninsular Malaysia) in used between 1948 and 1963 adopted a variation of the motto, rendered "Unity is Strength" in English and "Bersekutu Bertambah Mutu" (literally "Federation Improves Quality") in Malay Jawi script. Following the formation of Malaysia in 1963, the English motto was replaced by "Bersekutu Bertambah Mutu" in Malay Latin (Rumi) script, while the Jawi motto remained unchanged.
This was the motto of the Dutch Republic (1581-1795) and during most of the Napoleonic times (1802–10). It continued to be used in the country until 1816 when it was replaced by the current Dutch motto Je maintiendrai. "Unity makes strength" was recorded for the first time in the Netherlands in the book Gemeene Duytsche Spreekwoorden ("Common Dutch Proverbs") in 1550, whilst the area was still within the Spanish Empire and under the rule of Charles V. After the Dutch gained independence, the new Dutch Republic took over the phrase as its motto and it appeared on several of its coins and coats of arms, usually in the original Latin form, Concordia res parvae crescunt (literally "together the small will grow"), referring to the new state's initially small territorial size. From the late 16th century onwards the start of the motto was frequently used on Dutch coinage, such as the Leicester-rijksdaalder in 1586. [16]
The French occupied the Netherlands from 1795 to 1813, first as the Batavian Republic, then the Kingdom of Holland, then as an annexed part of France itself. Early in the occupation the national motto was changed to "Gelykheid, Vryheid, Broederschap" (Equality, Liberty, Fraternity), but from 1802 to 1810 'Unity makes strength' was re-introduced. It remained in use until the institution of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands when, in 1816, it switched to the House of Orange motto Je maintiendrai.
Today "Unity makes strength" ("Eendracht maakt macht") is still used by the Dutch football club PSV Eindhoven.
On 17 January 1852, the United Kingdom, ruler of the Cape Colony, approved the independence of the South African Republic in the Sand River Convention. "Eendragt maakt magt" was the motto on the new state's shield, and in 1888 it decided it should only use high Dutch (not Afrikaans) as its only official language. Rendered in Latin, the motto of the Union of South Africa from 1910 until 1961 was "Ex Unitate Vires" ("Out of Unity, Strength"). After 1961, as the Republic of South Africa, the motto was rendered on coins in both Afrikaans (as "Eendrag maak mag") and in English (as "Unity is Strength"). [17] The motto was changed in 2000 to "ǃke e: ǀxarra ǁke", which is "Unity in diversity" written in ǀXam.
The motto of Brooklyn, a borough of New York City founded by Dutch settlers, is "Eendraght maeckt maght". It appears on Brooklyn's seal and flag. Additionally, it is the motto of The Collegiate School, the oldest primary and secondary school in the United States. The motto Eendragt maakt magt also appears on the badge of the police force of Holland, Michigan, combined with God zij met ons, but written as God Zy Met Ons ("God be with us"). [18]
Eendragt maakt Magt was a noble-society (Heeren-Sociëteit) founded in Rotterdam in 1830, originally based in the Kralingse Plaslaan. It originally held weekly meetings in the Den Otter coffeehouse on the corner of the Hoflaan and the Honingerdijk. On 1 May 1865, the Association of Shareholders began fundraising for a private building for the society. This coincided with the fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo, which was one reason the society took the motto of king William II of the Netherlands. The architect Jan Verheul designed the new building, and it opened in 1903 on the corner of the Oudedijk and Waterloostraat. In 1980, the building was demolished to make way for the Caland Line metro route. A section of its ornate Art Nouveau facade (with the club's name between glazed tiles and leaf patterns) was preserved and built into the nearby Voorschoterlaan station. [19]
The name was also used as the business name of the tailors "Eendracht maakt macht", who in 1910 decided to rent a building on Oranjeboomstraat in Rotterdam, as a joint workshop-office to move their office out of their home. The fine dust from the finished goods caused many to suffer from emphysema and a larger workplace named "Eendracht maakt macht" was built.
The motto was also used by Helena Blavatsky in her editorials, in response to the internal feuding which often affected the Theosophical Society.
The motto of the fascist British government in the Doctor Who serial Inferno , mainly set in an alternate world, was "Unity is Strength," based on the slogan "Union is Strength" used by Oswald Mosley's contemporary Union Movement. [20] Similarly, Norsefire, the fascist British government in the 2005 film V for Vendetta uses "Strength through Unity" (along with "Unity through Faith") as a prominent slogan. [21]
In the 20th century, "L'Union Fait La Force" was the motto of and adorned emblems of the Union Saint-Jean-Baptiste d’Amérique, at one time the largest French Catholic fraternal organization in the United States. [22]
The Latin form concordia res parvae crescunt is used by various institutions: the Ateneum in Helsinki, Finland; the former mortgage society in Riga, Latvia (now the Foreign Ministry). [23]
Fasces is a bound bundle of wooden rods, often but not always including an axe with its blade emerging. The fasces is an Italian symbol that had its origin in the Etruscan civilization and was passed on to ancient Rome, where it symbolized a Roman king's power to punish his subjects, and later, a magistrate's power and jurisdiction. The axe has its own separate and older origin. Initially associated with the labrys, the double-bitted axe originally from Crete, is one of the oldest symbols of Greek civilization.
The coat of arms of Belgium bears a lion or, known as Leo Belgicus, as its charge. This is in accordance with article 193 of the Belgian Constitution: The Belgian nation takes red, yellow and black as colours, and as state coat of arms the Belgian lion with the motto UNITY MAKES STRENGTH. A royal decree of 17 March 1837 determines the achievement to be used in the greater and the lesser version, respectively.
The flag of Haiti is a bicolour featuring two horizontal bands coloured blue and red, emblazoned by a white rectangular panel bearing the coat of arms of Haiti. The coat of arms depicts a trophy of weapons atop a green hill and a royal palm symbolizing independence. The palm is topped by the Cap of Liberty. The motto L'Union fait la Force appears on a white ribbon below the arrangement.
The coat of arms of Bulgaria consists of a crowned golden lion rampant over a dark red shield; above the shield is the Bulgarian historical crown. The shield is supported by two crowned golden lions rampant; below the shield there is compartment in the shape of oak twigs and white bands with the national motto "Unity makes strength" inscribed on them.
The Order of Leopold is one of the three current Belgian national honorary orders of knighthood. It is the oldest and highest order of Belgium and is named in honour of its founder, King Leopold I. It consists of a military, a maritime and a civil division. The maritime division is only awarded to personnel of the merchant navy, and the military division to military personnel. The decoration was established on 11 July 1832 and is awarded by Royal decree.
The Eendracht or Eendragt was the flagship of the confederate navy of the United Provinces between 1655 and 1665. Eendragt was the more common spelling in the 17th century; Eendracht is the modern Dutch standard spelling.
The Eendracht was an early 17th century Dutch wooden-hulled 700 tonne East Indiaman, launched in 1615 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). Its Dutch name means "concord", "unity" or "union", and was a common name given to Dutch ships of the period, from the motto of the Republic: Concordia res parvae crescunt . The ship was captained by Dirk Hartog when he made the second recorded landfall by a European on Australian soil, in 1616.
Eendracht is a canal and former branch of the river Scheldt in the Netherlands.
Dzala ertobashia is the official motto of Georgia.
The Order of Leopold II is an order of Belgium and is named in honor of King Leopold II. The decoration was established on 24 August 1900 by Leopold II as Sovereign of the Congo Free State and was in 1908, upon Congo being handed over to Belgium, incorporated into the Belgian awards system. The order is awarded for meritorious service to the sovereign of Belgium, and as a token of his personal goodwill. It can be awarded to both Belgians and foreigners, and is seen as diplomatic gift of merit.
A Ship of the Line is an historical seafaring novel by C. S. Forester. It follows his fictional hero Horatio Hornblower during his tour as captain of a ship of the line. By internal chronology, A Ship of the Line, which follows The Happy Return, is the seventh book in the series. However, the book, published in 1938, was the second Hornblower novel completed by Forester. It is one of three Hornblower novels adapted into the 1951 British-American film Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N..
The coat of arms of Haiti is the national coat of arms of the Republic of Haiti. It was originally introduced in 1807, and it has appeared in its current form since 1986. Since this Haitian national symbol does not conform to the rules of heraldry for a traditional coat of arms, then it could be considered a national emblem instead.
The coat of arms of the Transvaal was the official heraldic symbol of the South African Republic from 1866 to 1877 and again from 1881 to 1902, and later the symbol of the Transvaal Province from 1954 to 1994 in a simplified form. It is now obsolete.
The Dutch Republic Lion was the badge of the Union of Utrecht, the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands, and a precursor of the current coat of arms of the Kingdom the Netherlands.
The Old Man and his Sons, sometimes titled The Bundle of Sticks, is an Aesop's Fable whose moral is that there is strength in unity. The story has been told about many rulers. It is numbered 53 in the Perry Index.
Ex unitate vires is a Latin phrase formerly used as the national motto of South Africa. It was originally translated as "Union is Strength" but was later revised in 1961 to mean "Unity is Strength". Its Dutch version is "Eendracht maakt macht", itself a non-literal translation of "in concordia res parvae crescunt", originally the motto of the Dutch Republic. That translation, along with its French counterpart - "L'union fait la force" - is also the current motto of Belgium. It was adopted as the national motto of South Africa in 1910 but was replaced in 2000.
National symbols of Belgium are the symbols used to represent the Kingdom of Belgium. Article 193 of the Belgian Constitution is dedicated to specifying the national flag, colours, coat of arms, and motto. It says the following: "The Belgian nation takes red, yellow and black as colours, and as state coat of arms the Belgian lion with the motto Unity makes strength."
The motto is Saedinenieto Pravi Silata, meaning "unity makes strength", said to be the last words of Khan Kubrat, the legendary founder of Old Great Bulgaria in 632.
The memorial erected to State. Representative Felix Gatineau of Southbrldge, founder of L'Union St John the Baptist in America, the largest French Catholic fraternal organization in the United States, will be dedicated tomorrow. Labor Day, and a parade in which 3000 persons will participate, will be a feature.
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