Happy Saint George’s Day!

 

The story of Saint George and the dragon has been retold countless times and has often been embellished. The medieval legend goes that a dragon made a nest near the city of Silene in Libya. While collecting water, the people disturbed the dragon and offered up sheep as a form of distraction, however when the sheep were gone, the people decided to offer up a maiden. Lots were drawn to decide who would be sacrificed and the King’s own daughter was selected, despite the King’s protests. As the offering was being made a crusader knight passed through the town on a white stallion. After fighting and slaying the dragon, he rescued the princess. This prompted the people of Silene to give up their pagan beliefs and covert to Christianity. It is also believed that the story of Saint George slaying the dragon may be a Christian retelling of the story of Greek hero Perseus who rescued Andromeda from a sea monster.

King Edward III made Saint George the patron saint of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, when it was newly founded in 1348, it was sometime later that he became the patron saint of England.

Not much is known about the Saint’s background or life, as no records remain. The common belief is that he was born in Cappadocia, now Turkey, circa 280 A.D. Although often depicted as a knight, it is thought that he was actually a Roman soldier who was tortured and decapitated in Nicomedia, or Lydda, now modern-day Israel during the persecution of Christians in 303 A.D. by Emperor Diocletian.

During the Crusades, he became something of an inspiration for Crusaders, epitomising the ideals of valour and selflessness, which led to a cult of Saint George. During the Protestant Reformation the cult dwindled, however the story of the Saint himself has remained well known and he has retained a place as a national symbol.

He was canonised by Pope Gelasius in 494 A.D. but in 1969 he was no longer included in the Universal Calendar and was considered only to have the status of a local saint; however, he is still recognised in the liturgy of both the Russian and Greek Orthodox churches.

 

He’s not just the patron saint of England either, in fact he is patron saint of the following places; Catalonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Palestine, Portugal, Germany, Greece, Moscow, Istanbul, and Genoa.

In Catalonia, the day is celebrated in a similar manner to Saint Valentine’s Day, it has been referred to as ‘dia dels enamorats’ or lovers’ day since about the 15^th Century. Traditionally on Saint George’s Day or Diada de Sant Jordi, spouses, lovers, family members and even colleagues swap gifts, usually roses and books.

The giving of roses has been a tradition since around the medieval period. According to the legend, when Saint George slayed the dragon, the dragon’s blood caused a rosebush to grow, George then offered one of the roses to the Princess. Men would present their love with a rose and in return they would be presented with a book. Although not a bank holiday in England some people choose to wear a rose on the 23^rd April to honour the day.

The tradition of giving books seems to have come about when a Valencian resident of Barcelona, Vicente Clavel Andrés realised that the date coincided with the death of the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes. He encouraged the giving of books as a way of honouring the author. This tradition even survived through the Franco dictatorship when the open sale of books in the Catalan language was banned.

In 1995 UNESCO, to encourage reading and publishing, created World Book Day which is celebrated annually on 23^rd April, this date was chosen because it was also the date that William Shakespeare died, though ironically, World Book Day in the UK is actually celebrated on March 5^th.  There is however a similar event called World Book Night which is celebrated on 23^rd April which was created to encourage UK adults to read.

 

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