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St John the Baptist, Wonersh
St George
Patron Saint of England
In Wonersh parish
church St George is depicted in the stained glass in the Lady Chapel.
St George is among the most famous of
saints and is the patron saint of England. Virtually nothing is known of the man
himself. It is now generally agreed that
St George was a martyr who suffered at Diospolis (Lydda, Ludd) in Palestine, probably under Diocletian around
300AD. According to versions in the
Eastern church in 5th C George held the
rank of Tribune in the Roman army and was beheaded for protesting at the
execution of Christians. All the other
legends which have grown up around his name may be regarded as fictitious,
including the story of the dragon. He
was popularised in plays and books which drew upon legend and existing culture
for material.
George was first made known in England in early 8th C when The Acts
of St George recount his visits to Caerleon and Glastonbury. Because of his widespread following George
became universally recognised as a Saint sometime after 900. The Crusaders certainly gave great impetus to
devotion to St George in the West, with stories of his appearance in
battle. In 1191-92 Richard I put the
army in Palestine
under the protection of St George. In
1348 George was adopted by Edward III as the patron of the new order of
chivalry, the Knights of the Garter and he had become the patron saint of England. Edward IV and Henry VII built the chapel of
St George at Windsor
Castle. Meanwhile Henry V’s famous
speech before the battle of Agincourt, immortalised by Shakespeare, invoked “England, Harry
and St George”.
The famous story of George and the dragon
became immensely popular in the west through the Golden Legend, translated into
English and printed by Caxton in the 15th
century. The dragon, a local pest, which
terrorised the whole country, poisoned with its breath all who
approached. Every day it was appeased
with the offering of two sheep, but when these grew scarce a human victim was
substituted. The lot fell on the king’s
daughter who went to her fate dressed as a bride. George attacked the dragon and led it captive
as if it were completely tame. George
told the people not to be afraid: If they believed in Jesus Christ he would rid
them of the monster. The king and people
agreed and 15,000 people were baptised.
George would take no reward but asked for the king to maintain churches,
honour priests and show compassion for the poor. The Legend continued with an account of his
sufferings and death in the persecutions of Diocletian, probably the only
factual part of the story.
He is venerated in the East as one of the
fourteen Holy Helpers and, universally, as the model of knighthood and avenger
of women. He is the acknowledged patron saint of England,
Aragon, Catalonia,
Georgia, Portugal, Lithuania,
Palestine, Greece
and Germany, also of Moscow, Istanbul, Genoa and Venice, and
protector of Ferrara.
He is honoured as the patron of soldiers, especially cavalry and archers, also
of Scouts.
He is bound up with British history,
traditions and popular culture, and his life has always been a source of
inspiration to artists. He is shown as a youth in armour, often mounted, and
slaying, or having slain, a dragon, his shield and lance pennant being a red
cross on a white ground.
His festival date is 23rd April.
Acknowledgement:- The Oxford
Dictionary of Saints.
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