Salus populi suprema lex esto
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Salus populi suprema lex esto (Latin "Let the good of the people be the supreme law" or "The welfare of the people shall be the supreme law") is a state motto of Missouri, accepted, like many other states, as an element of its state seal. The source can be found in Cicero's De Legibus (book III, part III, sub. VIII), as Ollis salus populi suprema lex esto.[1]
The phrase is also the motto, and appears on the coat of arms, of the London Borough of Lewisham.
John Locke, in his Second Treatise on Government, refers to it as a fundamental rule for government.
[edit] References
- ^ Cicero, Marcus Tullius. de Legibus. Free full text from the Latin Library. Retrieved on 2007-06-08.
