Etymology

Perfidious Albion

Today it means: The United Kingdom, seen as a country that is manipulative, deceptive, or treacherous on the international stage. Full definition →

French perfide Albion
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The story

  1. French · calque ofperfide Albion
  2. English todayPerfidious Albion

Calque of French perfide Albion. First coined by French poet and playwright Augustin Louis de Ximénès at the beginning of the French Revolutionary Wars.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.