Thousands of people will celebrate St George’s Day across England and around the world today, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer issuing a rallying cry to “be proud of our national identity”.
Nottingham is expected to display the largest St George’s flag in the heart of the city, alongside a celebration hosted by the Royal Society of St George Radford Branch event at Nottinghamshire’s oldest pub, the Ye Olde Salutation Inn.
The Welsh villages of Broughton & Saltney could also be marking St George’s Day in style, with the tiny hamlets being named as the most English part of the UK in the 2021 Census.
Starmer kicked off St George’s Day celebrations last night, praising contemporary and classical cultural English icons, as well as national cuisines such as Melton Mowbray pork pies and Lancashire Eccles cakes.
However, while the majority of people will be celebrating today, the Church of England has put back this year’s feast day to Monday, April 28, due to a ruling that no saint’s day can take place between Palm Sunday and the Second Sunday of Easter inclusive.
Alongside being the patron saint of England, St George is also celebrated in Albania, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Greece, Georgia, Portugal, Romania, Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, Castile and León, Catalonia, Alcoi, Aragon, Genoa, and Rio de Janeiro.
Sir Keir Starmer celebrates St George’s Day with outgoing Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker
Gary Lineker and Sir Keir Starmer
PA
Residents in Nottingham react to St George’s Day
Residents in Nottingham have told GB News we should be “celebrating” English history on St George’s Day.
Speaking to reporter Jack Carson, some residents said people are “hellbent” on destroying English heritage.
Others have called for a bank holiday, matching similar practices in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Do our leaders do enough to celebrate Englishness? – VOTE NOW
Sir Keir Starmer hosted a St George’s Day Reception at Downing Street on Tuesday evening to celebrate the very best of England’s music, culture and sport.
Later today at 8am the flag of St George will be raised atop of 10 Downing Street to celebrate England’s patron saint, however the date is not a national holiday.
With that in mind, do you think our leaders do enough to celebrate Englishness?
GB News Members can have their say by voting in the poll here.
Who was St George and why did the English choose him as their patron saint?
St George was born in the 3rd century AD in Cappadocia in what is now modern day central Turkey.
While many images depict him as a knight in shining armour, he was actually a Roman army officer and was martyred for his Christian faith.
St George was canonised in 494 by Pope Gelasius, who claimed he was one of those “whose names are justly revered among men but whose acts are known only to God.”
Despite not visiting England, his reputation for virtue and holiness spread across Europe. He was known to be popular with King Edward I, who reigned from 1272 to 1307.
King Edward III (1327-77) also took an interest in the saint and owned a relic of his blood.
Sir Keir Starmer calls to ‘reclaim our flag’ following last year’s riots
The Prime Minister used his St George’s Day Downing Street address to “wrench the flag” from those who wish to “divide” us.
Starmer said: “It was the aftermath of the riots that showed what it means to be English. It marked the coming together of a country. People who got together the morning after, all across Britain with shovels, brooms, and brushes, to clean up their communities.
“Rebuilding walls, repairing damage and it’s in that spirit that we reclaim our flag and that was incredibly uplifting to go from rioting to people coming out to do what they could for our country.
“So that’s what we must do for our country, for English decency, honour and fairness. Wrench it out of the hands of those who want to divide this nation and reclaim it for good.”
