St. George

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

 Interesting Facts

Despite the fact that St. George has been the patron saint of England since the 14th century, only one in five people know that St. George’s Day falls on April 23rd.

More than a quarter of people living in England do not even know who their patron saint is!

Shakespeare was born on April 23rd, 1564 and he died on the same day in 1616.

 The Creation of the Tudor Rose
The father of King Henry VIII was Henry Tudor (who became King Henry VII). Henry was a member of the House of Lancaster. England had entered a long period of Civil war called the War of the Roses between the two most powerful noble factions of England called the House of York and the House of Lancaster. A final Lancastrian rebellion rose against the Yorkist King Richard III following the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower, who were the two young sons of King Edward IV. Henry VII defeated the Yorkist leader King Richard III in the Battle of Bosworth Field and claimed the throne of England becoming King Henry VII. The Dynasty of the Tudors was born, but it was was shaky claim based on an illegitimate Plantagenet line. The Lancastrian King Henry VII therefore cemented his claim by marrying Elizabeth of York, the Yorkist daughter of King Edward IV. The Houses of York and Lancaster therefore merged leading to the creation of the emblem called the Tudor Rose.

 More Facts

He is patron saint not only of England but also of Aragon, Catalonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Palestine, Portugal, Germany and Greece; and of Moscow, Istanbul, Genoa and Venice (second to Saint Mark). He's also patron saint of soldiers, archers, cavalry and chivalry, farmers and field workers, riders and saddlers, and he helps those suffering from leprosy, plague and syphilis. In recent years he has been adopted as patron saint of Scouts.