Salisbury, England George and the Dragon

Story and photos by Keith Kellett

Most English people are a little bit puzzled as to why St. George should have been chosen as their Patron Saint. We have plenty of home-grown saints—Alban, Aidan, Cuthbert, Hilda of Whitby and Oswald, for instance—the existence of whom is documented. So, why choose someone born (according to most accounts) in what is now Israel, noted mainly for allegedly saving the daughter of the King of Libya by slaying a gigantic fire-breathing lizard, which never actually existed?

The answer can be found in the 12th Century, when King Richard I and others thought that they could find grace by going to the Holy Land and "restoring" the holy city of Jerusalem to the Christian world.

It’s said that the warrior saint came to the aid of the Franks at the battle of Antioch in 1098. Ninety years later, King Richard placed his Crusaders under the saint’s protection, and adopted his red cross on a white background as their symbol. This was taken home and adopted as the national flag, and, many years later, incorporated into the Union Flag.

St. George’s Day is April 23rd, although, in Eastern Orthodox countries, it’s sometimes postponed if it happens to fall during Lent. In Spain, people sometimes celebrate by giving their friends gifts of books and roses. That’s an idea worth copying in England, because it’s also Shakespeare’s birthday. But, generally, the day is only marked by flying England’s red-crossed flag from the church tower … and not much else. Poor old George must be the world’s least celebrated patron saint!

St George’s popularity plummeted during the Reformation of the 16th Century, when anything resembling fun was regarded as sinful. He hung on in a few places; various youth organisations such as the Scouts and Guides often held St. George’s Day parades. Then, he saw a slight renaissance about 20 years ago – when the Roman Catholic Church dropped him from the calendar, on the grounds that there was no proof that he ever existed!

Even so, St. George is still celebrated in relatively few places, and I‘m lucky enough to live a short bus ride away from one of them: the city of Salisbury, where the Market Square is ideal for celebrations of this kind.

The celebrations vary from year to year, depending, upon the generosity or otherwise of the Borough Treasurer, but the theme is usually mediaeval—about 600 years down the time-line from when George is supposed to have existed, but, hey, it’s a fun day, not a history lesson!

Some years, there’s a joust up at nearby Old Sarum Castle, some years, there’s a civic parade, led by the Mayor and local dignitaries, trailed by a collection of knights, minstrels, Morris dancers, stilt walkers and other performers.

Always, though, there’s a Dragon. Unfortunately, he’s had his orders—no setting the place alight with his breath, and no devouring maidens—which takes some of the fun out of the proceedings! In fact, most of the dragons are rather cuddly and friendly; on one occasion, "St. George" got the "hiss-boo" for slaying him, and the dragon got a loud cheer when he got up again!

That, to me, is a bit like celebrating Trafalgar Day by re-enacting Napoleon’s navy! The dragon is the bad guy, for Pete’s sake!

But, since the plot calls for the dragon to be slain, then slain he must be … sometimes, by students of Salisbury College, in the style of a mediaeval mystery play, and, on one occasion, in the form of a puppet show.

That’s one of the two essentials … the other is, of course, the traditional, if clichéd, good time being had by all!

(For more information about Salisbury in general, and the St. George’s Day celebration in particular, please visit www.visitsalisbury.com.)