St George’s Middle East links and legends

We all know that St George is patron saint of England, but did you know that he is also one of the most popular saints in the Middle East? There are pilgrimage sites and places associated with his story found in Israel, the West Bank, Lebanon and Egypt.

There is little surviving historical evidence for the figure of St George but he was venerated as a saint from at least the fifth century. There are many early Christian churches and monasteries across the Middle East dedicated to him and George (or Gerges or Girjis) is still a popular name among Christian communities, particularly Palestinians.

He is also an important figure for Muslims, where he is associated with spring and the colour green and known by the name Al-Khodr (derived from the Arabic for ‘Green’). On St George’s Day, Christians and Muslims often attend the same pilgrimage sites and celebrations together.

18th-century icon of St George from Aleppo, Syria.

St George the Palestinian

For Palestinians he is a local boy. He is believed to have been born in Cappadocia (in modern-day Turkey), but his mother (venerated as St Polychronia) is said to have been a Christian from Lydda in what was then the province of Syria-Palestina – now Lod in Israel. She brought the young George back to live there when his father died and he grew up in the Christian faith.

According to tradition, George joined the Roman army and was martyred for refusing to renounce his faith in 303.

Shrine to St George at Al-Khader, West Bank

One version of the story states that before his execution, St George was imprisoned at Al-Khader, near Beit Jala in the West Bank (though other places also claim this distinction – including the Greek Orthodox Church of St George in Cairo). A monastery now stands on the site and on St George’s Day (which in the Eastern church is celebrated on 6 May), local Christians traditionally process through the town and up to the monastery. A special service is held and bread marked with the symbol of St George is baked and given as an offering.

It has been a site of pilgrimage for many centuries and once held the irons that were said to have imprisoned St George. These were believed to have healing properties.

The tomb of St George in Lod, Israel

After St George was killed, his body was said to be taken to his home town of Lydda (Lod) for burial. In the 5th century a church was built over the place where St George was believed to be buried. Today, the Greek-Orthodox church of St George still stands on that site (although the actual building has been destroyed and rebuilt several times over the years).

A stone sarcophagus marking where St George was said to be buried is housed in the church crypt and visited by many pilgrims. Each month, oil mixed with myrrh is poured on the top of the sarcophagus as a votive offering and pilgrims often dip scraps of fabric in the oil so they can take some home with them. This church also houses chains said to be relics of St George.

St George in Egypt

In the Coptic tradition, St George – known by his Syriac name of Mar Girgis – is venerated as ‘The Prince of Martyrs’ or ‘The Great Martyr’. His feast day is on 1 May.

Some versions of the St George legends state that he was posted to Egypt when part of the Roman army and that it was here that he was martyred.

Large celebrations are held every year at many of the monasteries and churches that bear his name – including at the monastery at Mit Damsis, a small town at the heart of Dakahlia governorate, where the monastery relics are said to include part of the arm of St George (brought there by a wealthy Egyptian who had travelled to Palestine).

Celebrations are also held at the Church and Monastery of St George in old Cairo, which is the seat of the Greek Patriarchate of Alexandria. This is said to have been built over the Roman fort which was the place of St George’s imprisonment and martyrdom. The church complex includes a shrine holding relics of St George, including chains that were said to have been used to bind him and an icon that miraculously survived a fire that destroyed much of the church in 1904. 

St George and the Dragon in Lebanon

The earliest surviving written account of the legend of St George and the Dragon is from The Golden Legend collection of hagiographies, compiled by Jacobus de Voragine in 1265 (although the story is said by many to have been adapted from earlier legends and transferred to St George). This places the event in Libya but according to Lebanese tradition, it was at Beirut that St George slew the dragon and why the Bay of St George, on which Beirut sits, got its name. A spring in a cave further up the coast at Jounieh Bay is said to be where St George cleaned his spear and sword of blood. Some traditions also say it was the home of the dragon. Now known as The Cave of St George (or Mar Geryes Al Bati in Arabic), the waters of the spring there are believed by some to have healing properties.

Both the Greek Orthodox Cathedral and Maronite Cathedral in Beirut are dedicated to St George, as is one of the city’s mosques.