 Medieval scholars have pointed to a connection between the Order of the Garter and the Middle English poem , Sir Gawain and the Green Knight . In Gawain , a girdle , very similar in its erotic undertones to the garter , plays a prominent role . A rough version of the Order 's motto also appears in the text . It translates from Old French as " Accursed be a cowardly and covetous heart . " While the author of that poem remains disputed , there seems to be a connection between two of the top candidates and the Order of the Garter . Scholar J.P. <unk> has suggested that it is someone related to John of Gaunt , 1st Duke of Lancaster , and , more importantly , a member of the Order . Another competing theory is that the work was written for Enguerrand de Coucy , seventh Sire de Coucy . The Sire de Coucy was married to King Edward III 's daughter , Isabella , and was given admittance to the Order of the Garter on their wedding day . " 
