Patron Saints, Red Rose - St George | Garden History

“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet”
Shakespeare

Shakespeare, arguably England’s greatest poet and playwright, shares both his birthdate and death date with England’s patron saint. But why do we have a link between St George and red roses?

Saint George – a Dragonkiller?

St George‘s Day is celebrated in many countries other than England; Canada, Hungary, Jordan, Czech Republic, Greece, Serbia, Bosnia and Georgia to name but a few.

It is particularly popular in Catalonia in Spain where giving a red rose to a loved one has been traditional since the Middle Ages, although the emphasis is more about the romance of the rose than the slaying of a dragon.

St George was first mentioned in England in the seventh century by the Venerable Bede, the famous monk and chronicler. The order of St George is the foremost order of knighthood in England and there are many churches named after this legendary slayer of dragons who has been England’s patron saint since the fourteenth century.

As we most of us know, St George was ace at killing dragons and rescuing fair maidens. But we may not know why he has a red rose for his emblem. I mean, something more fire resilient such as an aloe or other succulent would seem more suitable. Succulents by their very nature are fire resistant; their thick leaves are largely full of water which makes them slower to burn; to the extent that they are being used as a firebreak plant around houses in certain parts of Australia.

Except of course that there weren’t many succulents in Medieval England, which is when the rose seems to have first been connected to the saint.

Maybe the red rose was given to St George by the princess he rescued? St George was not English by birth; he was born in Turkey in the third century and was a soldier in the Roman army. Whilst he probably slew plenty of Rome’s enemies whether he rescued a princess or high born lady from a ‘dragon of a foe’ is not documented! St George was most likely martyred for his Christian faith, which may be where the dragon legend began.

England’s Red Rose

Or perhaps the red rose as England’s national emblem links more to the English ‘Wars of the Roses’ (1455-1485). This civil war between the noble families of York and Lancaster was about who had the better right to the crown of England. The tale of the roses is that whilst walking and arguing in the castle pleasure garden, the Duke of York picked the white rose for his symbol, whilst the Lancaster chose the red rose.

At the Battle of Bosworth the Yorkist King Richard III was killed and the Lancaster scion, Henry Tudor, was victor and crowned king. The meaning of the layered red and white Tudor rose was that it symbolised the coming together of these two noble houses in the shape of Henry VII of Lancaster and Elizabeth of York, or more specifically in their son, Henry VIII and his children. So strictly speaking, England’s national emblem should be the red and white Tudor rose.

Red Roses and St George

The rose is an ancient flower; fossil remains in Colorado date back to 35 million years ago. The family Rosaceae contains over 3000 species of tree, shrub and herbaceous plants, including apples and strawberries, so, as you would expect, covers most of the globe in its distribution. Everywhere except Antarctica in fact.

Roses, being pollen bearers, may cause an allergic reaction, as may the perfume, either to nose or skin. But hopefully, a celebratory red rose for St George’s Day, whilst scented, will not cause too many sneezes or skin itches.

As for the link between St George and the red rose, it’s difficult to find anything definitive. I could pick out Shakespeare’s play Henry V; this red rose Lancastrian King famously rallied his troops with “Cry God for Harry, England and St George!” before the Battle of Agincourt. But for those who prefer a link less war-like, we could turn to Catalonia and follow their tradition for April 23rd: to give a red rose and a book to a loved one. Perhaps the book could be about gardens? (see Plews selection of eBooks) Or should it be about dragons?