St David’s Day was celebrated on 1 March. Pious St David who founded monasteries and churches and allegedly performed miracles was born in Wales. Feasts, parades, singing, traditional costume wearing and daffodils all celebrate Welsh culture. St Patrick, Maewyn Succat was kidnapped from Wales or Scotland and taken across to Ireland. He escaped but returned to Ireland to spread Christianity across the country. He too is celebrated with wearing of green (to hide from the leprechauns), shamrock to represent the Trinity, music, dancing and feasting, with even a parade in New York on 30 November. St Andrew’s day, an official Bank Holiday in Scotland is to celebrate St Andrew, an apostle of Jesus, hence the official saltaire Flag as he was supposedly crucified in that position. The Scots really know how to celebrate the day, the day before the beginning of advent.
St George
All I know about St George is a rousing speech from Shakespeare’s Henry V delivered by Prince Hal prior to the Battle of Agincourt, an amusing episode of Dad’s Army to represent the killing of the dragon, my husband David’s reminiscences of marching with the Boy Scouts on St George’s Day and Boris Johnson, as Mayor of London trying to encourage celebrations.
We should celebrate. St George killed a dragon and saved a beautiful princess from being gobbled up by said dragon. St George was a high-ranking officer in the Roman Army but he was a devout Christian and refused to deny his faith, so after being tortured he was decapitated in CE303 on the orders of the Emperor Diocletian. Although a courageous martyr, St George had no connection with England and apparently no connection with slaying a dragon. Sixteen other countries, regions or cities, including Georgia, celebrate the courage of St George. England appears to recognise him only as a slayer of a fictious dragon.
St Edmund used to be the patron saint of England, until Edward lll made St George patron saint of England in 1350. There are those who consider Edmund should be re-instated as patron saint. Others suggest St Cuthbert or St Alban. But if the slaying of dragons in England is the main criterion, why not John, as in the North of England we have two dragon slayers. Well, they slayed what we call worms, but our worms were fiercer than any dragon.
John Lambton and the worm
When John Lambton was fishing in the river he landed a peculiar catch, a worm with a dragon’s head. Not fit to eat, he threw it down a well, where it grew and grew, and grew, came out of the well and was so huge it could wrap itself around a hill, much bigger than George’s dragon. John Lambton had gone to the crusades and when he returned, he was dismayed at the devastation of his father’s land, decimated by the rapacious worm. Many had tried to kill the worm but like the Hydra, it could regrow bits that had been chopped off. John needed help, so he sought the aid of a witch who lived near Durham and following the witch’s instructions, well almost, the dragon/worm was duly killed. However, the instruction to kill the first thing he saw after the death of the worm was not carried out, as his overjoyed father ran to meet him and he couldn’t kill his father. Subsequently the Lambtons were cursed, or so the legend says.
John Conyers and the wyvern
Our other dragon-slayer was John Conyers. He destroyed the ferocious wyvern which devastated the area around Sockburn, devouring animals and terrorising inhabitants. This beast was probably the inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Jabberwocky. John Conyers was the brave champion. He slew the wyvern, the worm, and the flying serpent with fire spurting from its mouth. Lewis Carroll was living at nearby Croft when he wrote his poem and it is thought he based the Jabberwocky on this legend. John Conyers used a falchion to slay the monster but it was a vorpal blade the slew the Jabberwocky;
“One two! One two! And though and through The vorpal blade went snicker- snack He left it dead, and with its head He went galumphing back.” After John Conyers had slain the gruesome beast, he threw it into the River Tees. However, there are also religious connections with the slaying of the wyvern and of the use of the falchion. When a new Bishop of Durham is consecrated, a ceremony takes places on the bridge over the River Tees near Croft. The Lord of Sockburn reads a speech whilst presenting a replica of the falchion used to slay the wyvern, (the original being in Durham Cathedral) to the newly consecrated Bishop. That speech includes the words;
“The champion Conyers slew the worm, the dragon a fiery flying serpent which destroyed man, woman and child”
after which the Bishop receives the falchion, wishes the Lord of Sockburn good health, before handing it back to the Lord.
So, here we have two Northern English dragon-slayers, both named John, and two Northern English worms, dragons or wyverns. One John, John Conyers has a direct association with the Bishop of Durham. His falchion is in Durham Cathedral. So, with a;
“Whist! Lads, had yor gobs…. An Aa’ll tell ye ‘boot the worm.” The killers of the worms, both named John, both genuine dragon-slayers, could possibly be added to the nomination list for Patron Saint of England to replace St George. I would certainly celebrate that!
