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Friday, April 23, 2004

It's St George's Day

- St George (d.303)
"There is very little information about the life St George, but it is known that he was not English. He is thought to have been an early Christian martyr from the area of modern day Turkey, who was executed in Palestine in the third century."

- Saint George (Wikipedia)
- St. George, Patron Saint of Scouting

- The great St George revival, BBC News, Thursday, 23 April, 1998.
"St George, a third century martyr, dragon-slayer, rescuer of maidens, figurehead for the Crusaders and patron saint of England has been gradually forgotten over the centuries."

- Labour MP gets set to fight St George's corner: "Racist tag fades as 'decent people' reclaim patron saint."
"Tom Watson, Labour MP for West Bromwich East, is aiming to slay the dragon of official indifference to England's patron saint. He has put down an early-day motion calling on the government to make St George's Day a "national day of celebration" and commending his local council, Sandwell, for organising a festival today. "It's time to reclaim symbols of Englishness, like the flag of St George, for moderate, tolerant people," he said. "At Westminster there is an anomaly: we have devolved power to Scotland and Wales, and local symbols like the thistle in Scotland are now routinely used by political parties. But in England we remain suspicious of such symbols. I'm arguing that we shouldn't be ashamed of the flag of St George."

"The far right has sought to promote the flag of St George and the idea of Englishness as their property, rather than the property of ordinary, decent people," said the mayor of Sandwell, Councillor Martin Prestidge. "We are seeking to celebrate St George's Day in a non-racist, non-confrontational inclusive way."

- Down with St. George: Fans of the War on Terror, Which Sounds Ever More Like Nineteen Eighty-Four, Still Venerate George Orwell. They Can Have Him. by John R. MacArthur, is the publisher of Harper's Magazine, Published on Saturday, March 30, 2002 in the Toronto Globe & Mail.
- The English observer: Orwell, Englishness and Empire, Stephen Woodhams, University of Luton, Imperium, VOL III, Spring 2002.

- That Blessed Plot, That Enigmatic Isle: "Is there such a thing as "Englishness"—and if not, then why can't one imagine Samuel Johnson as an Italian?" by Christopher Hitchens The Atlantic Monthly; October 2003; That Blessed Plot, That Enigmatic Isle; Volume 292, No. 3; 126-133.

Christopher Hitchens contributes an essay on books each month to The Atlantic Monthly.

Posted by Nick @ 08:15 GMT

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