Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno is a Latin phrase that means One for all, all for one. It is the unofficial motto of Switzerland. This attitude is epitomized in the character of Arnold von Winkelried. A French version, Un pour tous, tous pour un, was made famous by Alexandre Dumas in the 1844 novel The Three Musketeers.
Many of Shakespeare's contemporaries recognized him not for plays like Hamlet and Macbeth, but poems like Lucrece and Venus and Adonis. Thus, his use of it could have contributed to more widespread usage, since these poems were commercial successes in his time.
In a meeting in 1618 between leaders of Bohemia's Catholic and Protestant communities, which resulted in the third defenestration of Prague, a representative of the Protestants read a letter affirming, "As they also absolutely intended to proceed with the execution against us, we came to an unanimous agreement among ourselves that, regardless of any loss of life and limb, honor and property, we would stand firm, with all for one and one for all... nor would we be subservient, but rather we would loyally help and protect each other to the utmost, against all difficulties."[1]
Tous pour un, un pour tous (All for one, and one for all) is a motto traditionally associated with the titular heroes of the novel The Three Musketeers written by Alexandre Dumas père, first published in 1844. In the novel, it was the motto of a group of French musketeers named Athos, Porthos, Aramis and d'Artagnan who stayed loyal to each other through thick and thin.[2][3]
On November 30, 2002, in an elaborate but solemn procession, six Republican Guards carried the coffin of Dumas from its original interment site in the Cimetière de Villers-Cotterêts in Aisne to the Panthéon. The coffin was draped in a blue velvet cloth inscribed with the motto.[4]
As a motto
Traditional motto of Switzerland
Memorial sheet to mark the revision of the Swiss federal constitution on April 19, 1874, by E. Conrad, c. 1874
Switzerland has no official motto defined in its constitution or legislative documents.[5] The phrase, in its German (Einer für alle, alle für einen), French (un pour tous, tous pour un), Italian (Uno per tutti, tutti per uno) and Romansh (In per tuts, tuts per in) versions, came into widespread use in the 19th century. After autumn storms had caused widespread floods in the Swiss Alps in late September and early October 1868, officials launched an aid campaign under that slogan,[6] deliberately using it to evoke a sense of duty and solidarity and national unity in the population of the young nation. Switzerland had become a federal state only 20 years earlier, and the last civil war among the cantons, the Sonderbundskrieg, had been in 1847. Newspaper ads that used the motto to call for donations were run in all parts of the country.[7]
The phrase was increasingly associated with the founding myths of Switzerland, which often also have solidarity as a central theme, to such a degree that "Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno" was even written in the cupola of the Federal Palace of Switzerland in 1902.[8] It has since been considered the motto of the country. Politicians of all parties and regions acknowledge it as the motto of Switzerland.[9][10][11][12][13]
Manga artist Kōhei Horikoshi uses the two halves of the phrase within his series My Hero Academia to represent two opposing superpowers (known in their respective universe as Quirks). 'One for All' referring to the power inherited by the series protagonist Izuku Midoriya, which is passed down from one wielder to the next stockpiling previous wielders quirks for the next one to act as a symbol of peace. 'All for One' referring to the power and main antagonist of the series who steals the powers of others for their own gain. Thus, literally, one power for all, and all powers for one.
^Helfferich, Tryntje (2009). The Thirty Years War: A Documentary History. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company. p. 16.
^The Three Musketeers at Project Gutenberg, ch. 9: "'And now, gentlemen,' said d'Artagnan, without stopping to explain his conduct to Porthos, 'All for one, one for all--that is our motto, is it not?'"
^Les Trois Mousquetaires at Project Gutenberg, ch. 9: "Et maintenant, messieurs, dit d'Artagnan sans se donner la peine d'expliquer sa conduite à Porthos, tous pour un, un pour tous, c'est notre devise, n'est-ce pas?"
^"La fraternité"(PDF) (in French). Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland. June 2003. p. 2. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2006-03-27. The traditional motto "one for all, all for one" has no constitutional or legal foundation." URL last accessed January 18, 2006.
^Summermatter, Stephanie; Pfister, Christian (2004). "Zoll der Sympathie—Die Bewältigung der Überschwemmungen von 1868 mit Hilfe der Eidgenössischen Spendensammlung". Katastrophen und ihre Bewältigung. Perspektiven und Positionen(PDF) (in German). Berne: Verlag Paul Haupt. ISBN3-258-06758-9. Archived from the original(PDF) on March 27, 2006. Retrieved January 23, 2006.
