The motto of Scotland - "Nemo me impune lacessit" roughly translated colloquially as "Who dares meddle with me?"


The emblem of Scotland since the 1200s! The story (in a nutshell) goes that Norse invaders came ashore in south west Scotland, barefoot and silent, intending to attack the Scots under cover of darkness. However, not being able to see the terrain they were crossing, one of the Norsemen stepped on a prickly thistle and yelled in pain, thus alerting the Scots to their presence. A battle ensued and the Scots, emerging the victors, adopted the thistle as their emblem!





This thistle would offer up a double whammy if stood on! It wouldn't just be the thistle that would cause pain!