Hatty
Site Admin
In: Berkshire
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The English are said to have been calling the French 'frogs' for centuries, some say because the French ate frogs' legs but it could have kicked off in the aftermath of Paolo Emilio's Gregorised version of French history, published 1581.
One of the Critical Moments to borrow from Wiley is the baptism of Clovis, according to Gregory aka Paolo, and it transformed royal French heraldry
| ... the images it bore had changed after Clovis’s baptism. When describing the various symbols used, Jean de Serres and Bernard Girrard du Haillain even clearly rely on Emilio: »It is said that at this time Clovis changed the royal coat of arms, replacing the three frogs (or, as the learned say, three red crowns on a silver field) with countless lilies.« |
My local pub is The Three Frogs but only goes back to the 18th century. The three frogs are supposed to have been the heraldic device of Pharamond, first king of the Franks, and also reputedly featured on the Bourbon coat of arms though no evidence for either claim exists.
French historians describe the device as a crapaud i.e.toad, but perhaps the ignorant English couldn't tell the difference between frogs and fleur de lys. It sounds like Paolo Emilio believed the moniker had ancient roots and the English had already been calling the French 'frogs' for centuries.
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