# Richard of York gave battle in vain

> English word · Phrase

## Definitions
1. A mnemonic phrase to help remember the order of the seven colours of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.

## Etymology
A reference to Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York (1411–1460), who was killed in the Battle of Wakefield.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/richard-of-york-gave-battle-in-vain