St. George's Day in Vatican City
A public holiday is observed in the Holy See to mark the name saint of the current pope.
As George ('Jorge') is the birth name of Pope Francis, Saint George's Day on 23rd April is a holiday.
When is St. George's Day?
St. George's Day is celebrated annually on 23rd April, as this is the generally accepted date of St. George's death.
St George is also the patron saint of England, Portugal, Georgia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Macedonia, and many cities across Europe.
History of St. George's Day
St. George was a cavalryman in the Roman army at Lydda, now in modern-day Israel. He was a Christian at a time when Rome was ruled by the emperor Diocletian, who was anti-Christian.
He refused to make sacrifices to the Roman gods. As a result, he was tortured over several years and eventually suffered a martyr's death, when he was beheaded in 303 AD.
He began to be venerated around the fifth century when a monastery was built and dedicated to him in Jerusalem.
