JohnC6
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Today is St Georges Day not that it’s of any meaning to most English people. To the best of my knowledge the Irish,Welsh and Scots make a big deal out of their saints’ days. I wondered who he was , what is his origins ?
St George. Patron saint of England since 1400. Amongst patron saints he’s in a league of his own. He was born in AD 283. in Cappadocia, which was a province of the Roman Empire and is,today, eastern Turkey. He was chosen as England’s patron Saint in 1350, by King Edward III and was known as the dragon-slayer. St George rescued a princess who was about to become dinner for a dragon that had settled near the city of Silene – allegedly in modern-day Libya.The villagers there were tormented by a dragon and they fed all their sheep to it, when there were no more sheep,children were next ,then it was the turn of a princess and that was a sacrifice too far and they called upon George to sort out the dragon which he did. George 1 Dragon 0 No replay. His father was killed by the Romans for his Christian beliefs and after that happened his mother took him to live in Palestine. George eventually joined the Roman army and legend has it that he became a high-ranking officer .He was in the cavalry,hence the images of him on a horse. The Romans eventually killed him,too for his Christian beliefs.They tortured him (I’ll spare the details)but as he prayed he was healed so they decapitated him. That was under the rule of Roman Emperor Diocles on April 23 303 . He’s considered a martyr in Islam,too. He became England’s saint in 1350 but never visited here .He was canonised by Pope Gelasius in AD 494. His cross wasn’t used to represent England until the reign of Henry V111. born and even died on April 23rd 1564-1616 respectively. The Knights Templar adopted the St George’s cross flag during the 11th and 13th century crusades. Whilst the other saints are exclusive to their respective countries St George is shared. He multi-tasks. He is also the patron saint of Lithuania,Portugal,Germany,Greece,Georgia,Moscow,Istanbul,Beirut,Palestine and Catalonia. That’s not all. He’s also the patron saint of soldiers, archers,cavalry,farmers,field workers,riders and saddlers and he helps those suffering from leprosy and even helps out his fellow saints..St Denis, who is the patron saint of syphilis, St Sebastion,the patron saint of the Plague (Black Death) and, when he has time, he also helps out St Damien, patron saint of leprosy. He was even used by the Nazis for propaganda purposes and in 2017 Ukrainian President Poreshenko signed a law banning the St George ribbon which isa seen by many Ukrainians as a symbol of Russian aggression. The ribbon,black and yellow, later orange, dates back to 1769 when Catherine the Great established the Order of St George. The medal was attached to the ribbon.
So..why do we have such an international patron saint when the other constituents of the British Isles have indigenous patron saint whereas England has a multinational one ? The Catholic church had King Edward(Edward the Confessor 1003-1066) as England’s patron saint until Edward 111(1312-1377) gave the title to George.
Another anomaly. The patron saint of Northern Ireland St Patrick. The fans of the England football team, in particular, carry St George flags and they can be seen draping the flag around them I doubt very much they are aware of the history of the Crusades in relation to it. Are they aware,also that it’s the flag of the Church of England ?
So..who could or should be the patron saint of England. There is a candidate. King Edmund, (Edmund the Marty )King of East Anglia 855-869 so he was an indigenous Anglo-Saxon who died in defence of Christianity and was a real person. Infact, he was patron saint until Edward 111 decided that George should be.
https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Edmund-original-Patron-Saint-of-England/
Dates vary according to the source of information but that aside, if we’re going to have a Patron Saint the let it be an indigenous one .
St George. Patron saint of England since 1400. Amongst patron saints he’s in a league of his own. He was born in AD 283. in Cappadocia, which was a province of the Roman Empire and is,today, eastern Turkey. He was chosen as England’s patron Saint in 1350, by King Edward III and was known as the dragon-slayer. St George rescued a princess who was about to become dinner for a dragon that had settled near the city of Silene – allegedly in modern-day Libya.The villagers there were tormented by a dragon and they fed all their sheep to it, when there were no more sheep,children were next ,then it was the turn of a princess and that was a sacrifice too far and they called upon George to sort out the dragon which he did. George 1 Dragon 0 No replay. His father was killed by the Romans for his Christian beliefs and after that happened his mother took him to live in Palestine. George eventually joined the Roman army and legend has it that he became a high-ranking officer .He was in the cavalry,hence the images of him on a horse. The Romans eventually killed him,too for his Christian beliefs.They tortured him (I’ll spare the details)but as he prayed he was healed so they decapitated him. That was under the rule of Roman Emperor Diocles on April 23 303 . He’s considered a martyr in Islam,too. He became England’s saint in 1350 but never visited here .He was canonised by Pope Gelasius in AD 494. His cross wasn’t used to represent England until the reign of Henry V111. born and even died on April 23rd 1564-1616 respectively. The Knights Templar adopted the St George’s cross flag during the 11th and 13th century crusades. Whilst the other saints are exclusive to their respective countries St George is shared. He multi-tasks. He is also the patron saint of Lithuania,Portugal,Germany,Greece,Georgia,Moscow,Istanbul,Beirut,Palestine and Catalonia. That’s not all. He’s also the patron saint of soldiers, archers,cavalry,farmers,field workers,riders and saddlers and he helps those suffering from leprosy and even helps out his fellow saints..St Denis, who is the patron saint of syphilis, St Sebastion,the patron saint of the Plague (Black Death) and, when he has time, he also helps out St Damien, patron saint of leprosy. He was even used by the Nazis for propaganda purposes and in 2017 Ukrainian President Poreshenko signed a law banning the St George ribbon which isa seen by many Ukrainians as a symbol of Russian aggression. The ribbon,black and yellow, later orange, dates back to 1769 when Catherine the Great established the Order of St George. The medal was attached to the ribbon.
So..why do we have such an international patron saint when the other constituents of the British Isles have indigenous patron saint whereas England has a multinational one ? The Catholic church had King Edward(Edward the Confessor 1003-1066) as England’s patron saint until Edward 111(1312-1377) gave the title to George.
Another anomaly. The patron saint of Northern Ireland St Patrick. The fans of the England football team, in particular, carry St George flags and they can be seen draping the flag around them I doubt very much they are aware of the history of the Crusades in relation to it. Are they aware,also that it’s the flag of the Church of England ?
So..who could or should be the patron saint of England. There is a candidate. King Edmund, (Edmund the Marty )King of East Anglia 855-869 so he was an indigenous Anglo-Saxon who died in defence of Christianity and was a real person. Infact, he was patron saint until Edward 111 decided that George should be.
https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Edmund-original-Patron-Saint-of-England/
Dates vary according to the source of information but that aside, if we’re going to have a Patron Saint the let it be an indigenous one .

