St George's Day

St George’s Day is annual religious and cultural celebration held on 23rd April which celebrates the death of Saint George. He is the foremost patron saint of England, Albania, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Greece, Georgia, Portugal, Romania, Syria, Lebanon, Castile and Leon, Catalonia (Barcelona), and Rio de Janeiro.

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Saint George was born in Cappadocia (Greece) and according to tradition, he was a soldier in the Roman army and was sentenced to death for refusing to recant his Christian faith. After this, he became one of the most venerated megalomartyrs in Christianity as well as a military saint since the crusade.

St George is the patron saint of England, and the tradition was established during the Tudor period (King Henry VIII) due to his popularity during the Crusades and the Hundred Year’s War. However, veneration of the saint in folk religion declined during the 18th century but attempts to revive it as an expression of English culture during the 19th century succeeded.

The observants of St George’s Day as a religious celebration change the date, as it is too close to Easter and each religious church moves it accordingly so that it does not interfere with their Easter celebrations.

St George was first documented by Venerable Bede, an English monk, around 735. The earliest dedications of church towards St George were noted in England during the 10th century. In 1348, King Edward III gave St George the position of patron saint of the Order of the Garter as a thanks for his supposed intervention during the Battle of Crecy (between France and England). Since then, his banner has been used prominent alongside the Royal Banner becoming a fixed element in the hoist of the Royal Standard.

Windsor Castle’s chapel is dedicated to St George and was built during the 14th century by Edward IV and Henry VII to honour the Order of the Garter. Members of the order meet annually in June for the annual Garter Service and their badge depicts St George on horseback slaying a dragon.

St George’s Cross is a red cross on white background and since the late Middle Ages has been associated with St George, also known as the military saint which was often depicted as a crusader and associated with the Knights Templar. In 1606, St George’s Cross was combined with St Andrew’s Cross and St Patrick’s Cross to form the Union Jack, which is the national flag of the United Kingdom.

The position of St George as the patron saint of England has been observed since the mid-1990s and the St George’s Cross (England’s flag) has been widely used at sporting events. Additionally, the revival of St George’s Day as an English national holiday has been encouraged by organisations such as English Heritage and the Royal Society of St George.

Currently, the biggest St George’s Day celebration in England takes place in Trafalgar Square, London where the St George’s Day festival is done to celebrate everything brilliant about England and being English. The free event takes place on the Sunday prior to St George’s Day. The event has live performance, rides, food and beverages.

Some traditionally English dishes are fish and chips, Cornish pasty and everyone’s favourite the full English breakfast (sausage, bacon, baked beans, eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms, and toast).

If you choose to celebrate St George’s Day, honour the English culture and then have a drink as part of the celebration. I believe that learning the reason behind the celebration is the best way of honouring every tradition.