What ever happened to the Dragon?
23 Apr 2018
Dear LPG,
I am hoping that you will be able to make my letter your News post on Saint George’s day.
I know that there is a campaign to add today to the Bank holiday list again. It appears to be being treated with the same respect as that of saint David of Wales. Ireland and Scotland take their national days a lot more seriously.
We share St George with quite a few other countries some of which do their celebrating on days that occur in May or November. These include Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Georgia, Greece, Portugal Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus Greece, Macedonia, Romania and Serbia.
When you think about it, to have so many countries adopt him as patron saint, he must have been a really good guy. I have Googled him and the Internet tells me that he was a Turkish-born soldier who lived most of his life in the 3rd century AD. His biggest accomplishment was to kill an Egyptian Dragon and save a princess. He also helped to protect persecuted Christians and this allegedly was his downfall. He was executed on April 23rd in the year 303.
There are stories of his making a divine appearance to English troops in the year 1098, during the Battle of Antioch, which gave rise to his being adopted by the English in or around the 12th century.
In Tudor times there were serious celebrations every St Georges day but by the mid-17th Century the euphoria had started to weaken somewhat so that we hardly remember him these days.
But I appeal to readers to spare him a thought on this English celebration day.
CJ, Lewisham
As ever LPG found some information …
