St George's Day

Happy St George's Day

St George is known as a heroic knight in shining armour slaying a ferocious, fire-breathing dragon. It's thought he was born in the 3rd century AD in Cappadocia (modern day Turkey), died in Lydda (modern day Israel) and his tomb was in Lod and was a centre of Christian pilgrimage.

It's likely that he was an officer in the Roman army, joining the retinue of Emperor Diocletian. It is thought that during the persecutions of the Emperor, George was executed for refusing to make a sacrifice in honour of the pagan gods, and like many saints he was depicted as a martyr after he died for his Christian faith.

His reputation for virtue and holiness spread across Europe and his feast day – the 23rd April – was celebrated in England from the 9th century onwards. He became popular with English kings. Edward I had banners bearing the emblem of St George (a red cross on a white background) and Edward III had a strong interest in the saint and owned a relic of his blood. 

The St George cross was not used to represent England until the reign of Henry VIII, and the dragon was added later. The story goes that St George rode into Silene (modern day Libya) to free the city from a dragon who had a taste for humans, but it’s a story which post-dates the real George by several centuries! It's a good story though.

Although he wasn't born in England, or never even visited, various kings were fond of him so he became our Patron Saint.

∼ Be safe and well ∼ 
Polly x