St. George's Day (23rd April)

St. George is the patron saint of England. His emblem, a red cross on a white background, is the flag of England, and part of the British flag. St George's emblem was adopted by Richard The Lion Heart and brought to England in the 12th century. The king's soldiers wore it on their tunics to avoid confusion in battle.

St George was a brave Roman soldier who protested against the Romans' torture of Christians and died for his beliefs.

St George's Day was a major feast and national holiday in England on a par with Christmas from the early 15th century. However, this tradition had waned by the end of the 18th century after the union of England and Scotland. In recent years the popularity of St George's Day appears to be increasing gradually.

A traditional custom at this time was to wear a red rose in one's lapel, though with changes in fashion this is no longer common. Another custom is to fly or adorn the St George's Cross flag in some way: pubs in particular can be seen on 23 April festooned with garlands of St George's crosses. However, the modern association of the St George's Cross with sports such as football, cricket and rugby, along with far-right political parties such as the BNP means that this tradition is rare outside this context.

There is a growing reaction to the recent indifference to St George's Day. Organizations such as English Heritage, and the Royal Society of Saint George (a non-political English national society founded in 1894) have been encouraging celebrations. Other organisations like the St George Unofficial Bank Holiday are encouraging people to be more proactive by taking the day off work (an unofficial bank holiday). They seem to be having some effect. On the other hand, there have also been calls to replace St George as patron saint of England, on the grounds that he was an obscure figure who had no direct connection with the country. However there is no obvious consensus as to whom to replace him with, though names suggested include Edmund the Martyr, Cuthbert of Lindisfarne, or Saint Alban.

One of the best-known stories about Saint George is his fight with a dragon. But it is highly unlikely that he ever fought a dragon, and even more unlikely that he ever actually visited England. Despite this, St George is known throughout the world as the dragon-slaying patron saint of England.

Interesting fact: Shakespeare was born on 23 April 1564 and he died on the same day in 1616.

(Shop window in High Street in Gillingham)

I was expecting...How should I put it? I was expecting...just something this day. It was the saint patron's day in here and there was no sign of it. Apart from their loved-postcards and a few flags everywhere. I had the idea they didn't have to work and it was a bank holiday. I realised of my big mistake. It's a shame they don't celebrate this day. After these two hard weeks working (that's after Easter) I was also expecting maybe I could be off this day as well. Curiously, they'll be off the 1st May because It's a bank holiday. That's right, but what happen with St. George? Is the society changing? or has the society changed yet? I'm afraid the question should be the second one. But I have to wonder now if this change is positive and how it will affect us in the future.