Archive for the ‘Annual Calendar Dates’ Category

Over 30,000 people join in London Marathon . The 26.2 mile course runs from Greenwich to The Mall (in front of Buckingham Palace). The event attracts serious marathon runners from around the world, but there are also many people who run for fun and to raise money for charity. This will be the 30th year.

St. George’s Day is on 23 April. St George is England’s patron saint, however, this day passes virtually unnoticed. Maybe this is because his connection to England is rather tenuous. Unlike St Patrick who lived in Ireland for many years and had a profound impact on Irish religous history, St George probably didn’t ever come to England.

St. George is believed to have been born in Cappadocia (now Eastern Turkey) in the year A.D. 270. He was a Christian. At the age of seventeen he joined the Roman army and soon became renowned for his bravery. He served under a pagan Emperor but never forgot his Christian faith.

When the pagan Emperor Diocletian started persecuting Christians, St. George pleaded with the Emperor to spare their lives. However, St. George’s pleas fell on deaf ears and it is thought that the Emperor tried to make him deny his faith in Christ, by torturing him. St George showed incredible courage and faith and was finally beheaded near Lydda in Palestine on 23 April, 303.

The popularity of St George in England stems from the time of the early Crusades when it is said that the Normans saw him in a vision and were victorious. St George’s emblem was adopted by Richard The Lion Heart and brought to England in the 12th century. The king’s soldiers wore it on their tunics to avoid confusion in battle

The most famous legend of Saint George is of him slaying a dragon. In the Middle Ages the dragon was commonly used to represent the Devil. The slaying of the dragon by St George was first credited to him in the twelfth century, long after his death.

This horse race, run at Aintree close to Liverpool, is probably the most famous in the World. It is the one race on which almost everyone has a bet, even if it’s just in the office sweepstake. It started in 1839, making it one of the oldest races in the World.

Some animal lovers would say it is notorious rather than famous as so many horses fall as they negotiate the high fences and ditches, and, despite improvement in recent years, there is often one horse fatality during the race.

Red Rum is the most famous horse to have won this race, doing it no less than 3 times.

Today an annual sporting event takes place that is just one race between only two teams and lasts only about 17 minutes, and yet thousands of people will come from miles around to watch it, suffering the often inclement weather of the season to do so. What’s more thousands more will watch the BBC live coverage.

What is it? The Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race or just ‘the boat race’. The two oldest & most prestigous universities in Britain have been challenging each other (last years’ loser always puts down the challenge) to a boat race on the Thames for 156 years.

I recall as a child being taken to see this race. I chose the dark blue rossette to wear (Oxford colours) because I liked the colour, but I swapped half way through when the light blues (Cambridge) were winning.

Why is it such a big deal? Who knows! Just one of those quintessentially British traditions.

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated on March 17, his religious feast day and the anniversary of his death in the fifth century. The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for over a thousand years.

On St. Patrick’s Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink, and feast—on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.

The first St. Patrick’s Day parade took place not in Ireland, but in the United States. Irish soldiers serving in the English military marched through New York City on March 17, 1762. Along with their music, the parade helped the soldiers to reconnect with their Irish roots, as well as fellow Irishmen serving in the English army.

The celebration of St Patrick’s Day as a big scale event remained the domain of the US, Canada and Australia. Recently, however, the Irish have cottoned on to its commercial value and the St Patrick’s Day Festival in Dublin is a growing event.

On the 1st of March the proud people of Wales celebrate St David’s Day. Unlike the English, who barely note the passing of St George’s day, the Welsh wear daffolidils in their lapels and there are many local events organised featuring singing and dancing. If you are in Wales at the time you may come across people in traditional Welsh dress.

Saint David, or Dewi Sant, as he is known in Welsh, is the patron saint of Wales. He was a Celtic monk, abbot and bishop, who lived in the sixth century. During his life, he was the archbishop of Wales, and he was one of many early saints who helped to spread Christianity among the pagan Celtic tribes of western Britain.

Dewi was a very gentle person who lived a frugal life. It is claimed that he ate mostly bread and herbs – probably watercress, which was widely used at the time. Despite this supposedly meagre diet, it is reported that he was tall and physically strong.

Dewi is said to have been of royal lineage. His father, Sant, was the son of Ceredig, who was prince of Ceredigion, a region in South-West Wales. His mother, Non, was the daughter of a local chieftain. Legend has it that Non was also a niece of King Arthur.

Dewi was born near Capel Non (Non’s chapel) on the South-West Wales coast near the present tiny city of Saint David. He travelled far on his missionary journeys through Wales, where he established several churches. He also travelled to the south and west of England and Cornwall as well as Brittany. It is also possible that he visited Ireland. Two friends of his, Saints Padarn and Teilo, are said to have often accompanied him on his journeys, and they once went together on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to meet the Patriarch.

Dewi is sometimes known, in Welsh, as ‘Dewi Ddyfrwr’ (David the Water Drinker) and, indeed, water was an important part of his life – he is said to have drunk nothing else. Sometimes, as a self-imposed penance, he would stand up to his neck in a lake of cold water, reciting Scripture. Little wonder, then, that some authors have seen Dewi as an early Puritan!

He founded a monastery at Glyn Rhosyn (Rose Vale) on the banks of the small river Alun where the cathedral city of St. David stands today. There are many stories regarding Dewi’s life. It is said that he once rose a youth from death, and milestones during his life were marked by the appearance of springs of water. These events are arguably more apocryphal than factual. Perhaps the most well-known story regarding Dewi’s life is said to have taken place at the Synod of Llanddewi Brefi. They were to decide whether Dewi was to be Archbishop. A great crowd gathered at the synod, and when Dewi stood up to speak, one of the congregation shouted, ‘We won’t be able to see or hear him’. At that instant the ground rose till everyone could see and hear Dewi. Unsurprisingly, it was decided, very shortly afterwards, that Dewi would be the Archbishop…

It is claimed that Dewi lived for over 100 years, and it is generally accepted that he died in 589. His last words to his followers were in a sermon on the previous Sunday. Rhigyfarch transcribes these as ‘Be joyful, and keep your faith and your creed. Do the little things that you have seen me do and heard about. I will walk the path that our fathers have trod before us.’ ‘Do the little things’ (‘Gwnewch y pethau bychain’) is today a very well-known phrase in Welsh, and has proved an inspiration to many. On a Tuesday, the first of March, in the year 589, the monastery is said to have been ‘filled with angels as Christ received his soul’.

Dewi’s body was buried in the grounds of his own monastery, where the Cathedral of St. David now stands. After his death, his influence spread far and wide – first through Britain, along what was left of the Roman roads, and by sea to Cornwall and Brittany.

St David’s Day, as celebrated today, dates back to 1120, when Dewi was canonised by Pope Callactus the Second, and March 1st was included in the Church calendar. After Dewi’s canonisation, many pilgrimages were made to St. David’s, and it was reported that two pilgrimages there equalled one to Rome, and three pilgrimages one to Jerusalem. March 1st was celebrated until the Reformation as a holy day. Many churches are dedicated to Dewi, and some to his mother Non.

It is not certain how much of the history of St. David is fact and how much is mere speculation. At the end of 1996, bones were found in St. David’s Cathedral which, it was claimed, could be those of Dewi himself. Unfortunately, these were later found to be medieval remains.

Regardless of this, St. David was, and is, a very important figure to the Welsh. Naturally, then, St. David’s Day is a time of great celebration in Wales. Societies all over Wales celebrate with special meetings and events.

Extracted from http://sucs.org/~rhys/stdavid.html

Love them or hate them, at this time year all the theatres are dominated by them! The Pantomime, a peculiarly British institution, is a romantic comedy play which has strong elements of farce. You have to suspend belief as the plot always revolves around a format in which the Principal Boy is a girl dressed up as a boy, a Dame who is a man dressed up as woman (central comic role), a Goodie (usually with magic powers, such as a Fairy Queen) and at least one Baddie, the most famous perhaps being the ugly sisters in Cinderalla who are also usually men dressed as women. The Principal Boy always gets his girl (who really is a girl) and the Baddies are foiled.

Although principally aimed at children, these days the dialogue can be quite satirical and contain (heavily disguised) adult humour.