Happy St George's Day!

[erastes]

 

As usual, it's ignored by many. Google, which always has a celebration of St Patrick's and St Andrew's day hasn't bothered to put up a page for England.

It makes me so angry that a few yobs who used the St George's flag have soured the flag for so many.

Come on England. There's nothing to be ashamed of being proud to be English. If it's all right to be proud to be Scottish, Welsh and Irish, then we deserve the same right.

Comments

[angrboda]

I fully support your refusal to let stupid people destroy your enjoyment of your nation's flag.

I would hate if it happened to mine.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

It's just infuriating. I mean it almost passed without a murmur via the media, anyway. There have been parties, but we don't even get a holiday. It's just been buried.

[yakalskovich]

There is a very nice song about that by one of my favourite bands ever.-

[essayel.livejournal.com]

It's my flag too - and I want it back!

[yakalskovich]

Exactly that one!!

[angrboda]

Hey, that's catchy! I found myself rocking along at my desk. Thanks for that. :)

[yakalskovich]

Look up 'Show of Hands' -- they are a very seasoned folk band, and their stuff is bloody brilliant. I once won a bag for posting their piece 'Innocents' Song to a virtual Christmas party, as the creepiest Christmas song of all times. When I finally manage to get back to GB at long last (I have such a list of people to visit!), I'll definitely go out of my way to catch a live gig of theirs somewhere.-

[erastes.livejournal.com]

oh that's fabulous! and it's so true - and something that my mother said for YEARS that the English have forgotten their roots and their national culture and their national dress--all in the name of political correctness. It's nothing--nothing--to do with being white, you can be English and any colour. I know that if I was to emigrate to a country and call myself a citizen of that country I would be proud of that country.

[alex-beecroft.livejournal.com]

Well, I was out all day morris dancing at a Suffolk brewery sited partly in a 13th century manor house, getting drunk and sunburned in unfeasibly beautiful surroundings, while practicing a folk art that goes back at least 1000 years, so I don't think I could have got more English if I'd tried :)

[erastes.livejournal.com]

and apparently the Church moved the day to May! Stupid!

[erastes.livejournal.com]

and you should have let me know! I would come along and cheered!

[alex-beecroft.livejournal.com]

*g* I wondered if it was close to you, but then decided that as it was a different county it must not be. If we're ever in Norfolk I'll be sure to tell you :) Thank you!

[alex-beecroft.livejournal.com]

I think it's probably fair that Easter trumps the saint's day of a saint who may not have actually existed. OTOH, perhaps we should adopt an English saint instead - one with a day that's nowhere near Easter. I nominate St. Etheldreda just because I like saying it :)

[erastes.livejournal.com]

and apparently the Church moved the day to May! Stupid!

[oceankitty1.livejournal.com]

Good for you! Every country needs to celebrate their uniqueness once in a while. Up here in old Norway, we seem to do it every day ;)

Slay that dragon!

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Exactly! You have a unique culture, and while we've embraced other cultures, there's no reason why we can't be proud of who we are. I think we spend too much time saying "sorry" to countries we invaded. It's a long time ago. (although we are still doing it) ithink we need to start waving our flag!

[oceankitty1.livejournal.com]

Oh yes! I couldn't agree more. And even though Norway was under the yoke of Sweden and Denmark for 500 years, we did some conquering too, back in the days. We certainly put our mark on Britain. Did we ever apologize? I don't think so :) ( Though I suspect the Scots still hold it against us...)Nationalism isn't a bad thing. You should google our "17. mai" We celebrate our national day by feeding the children as much ice-cream and hotdogs as we can possibly stuff them with. No tanks or military shows. Only flags and laughter. And balloons.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

LOL - exactly. It's not like a traditional English celebration is marching through the streets. It's wearing flowers in your hat, dancing with bells on your legs and hitting eachother with either sticks or balloons. Hardly intimidating, or at least until you read Pratchett...

[oceankitty1.livejournal.com]

LOL. Flowers and bells. That sounds nice. Much better than a belly ache :)

I'm actually considering using the Norwegian emancipation 'almost war' as a backdrop for my story. It fits almost too well. It allows for a lot of freedom as I'm writing fantasy.

[tim crowhurst (from livejournal.com)]

Truth, justice, freedom, reasonably priced love, and a hard boiled egg.

[stevie-carroll.livejournal.com]

I failed on Thursday at partaking of the canteen's St George's Day meal, because I had errands to run over lunch. On the other hand I have lots of photos of ancient buildings to post tomorrow (delay because I may take more in the meantime), and I'm very proud of both my family's pre-Doomsday Book roots (our branch seem to have been the serfs rather than the tenant farmers up until the early C20th) and the wonderful (and very long) family history I'm helping to create (overseeing the creation of) for my fictional Dukes of Derwent Dale.

Do I pass muster?

[erastes.livejournal.com]

Yes! You certainly do! I've just been told that the Church has MOVED St G's day to 5th May or some such twaddle, but I'm choosing to ignroe that. The Irish never move St Patrick's Day despite it always being in the middle of lent.

[schmoo999.livejournal.com]

Happy St. George Day! It is being celebrated today, Bright Monday, in the Orthodox Church since his feast day was Holy Saturday. He is a very important Saint in our church and always celebrated.

[erastes.livejournal.com]

very annoyed they move it. they never move st patricks day and that's always in Lent!

[tim crowhurst (from livejournal.com)]

That does make sense since St. George is the patron saint of (in addition to England) Russia, Moscow, Lithuania, Greece, Serbia and Georgia (the country, not the state).

Also Iraq, Aragon, Catalonia, Portugal, Palestine, Ethiopia, Gozo, India and Rio de Janeiro.

I think the reason he became England's patron saint is because he's the dragon-slayer and the dragon is the symbol of Wales which, before the Saxons arrived, once covered the southern two-thirds of Britain.