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“ Fourteen princes of the family of Plantagenet 
have sate on the throne of England for upwards 
of three hundred years, and yet very few of our 
countrymen have known either the reason of 
that appellation or the etymology of it: but 
history tells us that Geoffry, Count of Anjou, 
acquired the surname of Plantagenet from the 
incident of his wearing a sprig of Broom on his 
helmet on a day of battle. This Geoffry was 
second husband to Matilda, or Maud, Empress 
of Germany, and daughter of Henry I. of Eng- 
land, and from this Plantagenet family were 
descended all our Edwards and Henries.” 
Skinner assigns a different origin to this illus- 
trious name. He tells us that “ the house of 
Anjou derived the name of Plantagenet from a 
prince thereof, who, having killed his brother to 
enjoy his principality, afterwards repented, and 
made a voyage to the Holy Land to expiate his 
crime, scourging himself every night with a 
rod made of the plant Genet, Genista, Broom.” 
And we are told elsewhere that he was nick- 
named Plantagenet from the use which he had 
made of the Broom. 
There are three varieties of Broom, with 
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