General Chat

Have stuck my flag out of the window. - Can't see any others :o(( Tina

I am getting a pain in the ribs with all this nudging. God save the queen and all her loyal subjects. Happy days

I have tried to add different historical or mythical information on each thread. :-)

from http://www.troop7.org/Flags/SaintGeorge.html The Cross of Saint George Flag The red cross of St. George has been the national banner of England for centuries. It was first carried by the English Crusaders in 1100 A.D. and by John Cabot, Sir Walter Raleigh and Francis Drake during their explorations. The colonies of Jamestown and Plymouth first flew this flag over their stockades.

happy st georges day to one and all, what ever your nationalitly have a good day everyone tina x

I noticed that Sainsburys are selling cute little dragon outfits for children, presume because of St. Georges Day.

I agree that English should celebrate St Georges Day and be proud to do so. However, both the Union Flag and the English flag have for so long been used as the symbol for the bnp and other facist / racist groups, it isnt necessarily easy for people with skin other than white even if they are English to feel comfortable flying the flag! x

nudge

Wouldn,t like to be seen as a radical (I have two nationalistic threads going). This one was posted in November and has been resurrected - not that I mind. Happy days

Tommy No-one knows for sure where he came from but he was believed to have been martyred in the Palestine. He certainly had nothing to do with England:)

from http://www.salisbury.gov.uk/leisure/arts-and-entertainment/st-george.htm ''From medieval times to the present day, Salisbury has a proud history of celebrating St George's Day in style. To celebrate St George's Day is to celebrate our Englishness: the history, culture and heritage that has created our nation. And where better to celebrate this on April 23rd than in one of England's most historic cities. So who was St George? The life of England's patron saint is shrouded in legend – so much so that fact has merged with fiction. But St George was initially promoted to patron saint in 1061, when a church in Doncaster was dedicated to him. Our first literary reference to him in history comes from the Anglo-Saxon prose writer, Aelfric, who reveres him in his Lives of the Saints (c.1000). George also appears in the Golden Legends, an English translation of Jacobus de Voragine's Saint's Lives published by Caxton in 1483. Enter the dragon 1 The story we know today of Saint George and the Dragon dates from the troubadours of the 14th century. In the story, a dragon is terrorising the villages near Silena, in Libya. Lots are drawn in local villages, and maidens fed to the dragon to keep the peace. Saint George kills the dragon with a single blow from his lance, and then converted the locals to Christianity. As well as being patron saint of England, St George was also adopted as the Saint of Battles. This was partly because he was a soldier, but also because he is said to have appeared to the Christian army before the Battle of Antioch. He is also said to have appeared to King Richard I (the Lionheart) during his Crusade against the Saracens. Harry, England and St George In 1222 the Council of Oxford appointed April 23rd as St. George's feast day. Then later, Edward III formed the Order of the Garter in St. George's name in 1350. The cult of the saint was further advanced by Shakespeare in Henry V. Shakespeare gives Henry an unforgettable speech before he leads his troops into battle at Agincourt. 'Cry God for Harry, England and St George!' And in that year, St George was named England's patron saint. Of course, St George is also a popular figure outside England. In fact he is the patron saint of Portugal, Catalonia, Venice and Genoa.''

I seem to recall reading somewhere that st. george is turkish, could someone elaborate on this please.

My husband and his friends celebrate every year- this weekend they have gone off to Yorkshire. they always visit a brewery and celebrate fine English ales too..............maybe st georges day is just their excuse............ *goes away to ponder

I'm proud to be English and feel annoyed that our flag is so often said to be a racist symbol. I'll be flying my flag tomorrow and wearing my St George badge. Here's to St George and England!

Fred, the bnp use the union flag not the st. georges flag, they use the union flag because they represent the british isles, as opposed to just england.

Let's try to keep 23rd April threads at the front, if at all possible ? For England, St George, for William Shakespeare :-)

There'll always be an England.............. :-)

we dont want to upset all the foreign nationals living here now do we

The English should celebrate StGeorges day, of course we should, give me one good reason why we shouldnt, we have as much right to celerbrate and be patriotic as any other country in the UK . Fly your flag for England and be proud.

June I was thrilled when Charlie was born on the anniversary of the happiest day of my life. I think of him as an anniversary present from my husband who died five years earlier. Vivienne