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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;GeorgeM, post: 4400513, member: 28550&quot;]I&#039;d like my chances with a Scorpion (or a modern anti-tank rocket launcher) a little better...</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1106022[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>That said,&nbsp; it&#039;s my understanding that the &quot;dragon&quot; in the story is a metaphor for a monstrous person. Here&#039;s a quick recap of the story:</p><p><br /></p><p>In the late 3rd century,&nbsp; St. George was traveling home through the middle east (generally in the area of Syria or Libya) when he came across a fair princess who was tied up beside a lake. When he untied her, she begged him to leave her where he had found her, for she was to be sacrificed to appease a dragon. If unfed, the dragon would go on a frenzy and ravage her homeland. </p><p><br /></p><p>Instead,&nbsp; St. George waited for the dragon to come,&nbsp; and attacked it. He not only slayed the monster,&nbsp; but saved the princess and charmed her father enough that he offered the hand of the princess in marriage as a prize. Yet, George could not stay,&nbsp; for he had an appointment with grisly fate to keep in Italy.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>So, applying a bit of deductive reasoning, and assuming that the story had some basis in fact, I&#039;m guessing that Saint George was probably a Roman or Roman auxiliary passing through the area after completing his term of service.&nbsp; And the &quot;dragon&quot; was a local chief or warlord pushing unwanted affections on a ruler&#039;s daughter. Either our hero killed him or he otherwise outmaneuvered the warlord to win the hand of the princess (&amp; his departure was retconned because St. G wasn&#039;t allowed to have a happily ever after &amp; still earn his sainthood). </p><p><br /></p><p>900+ years later, poorly educated English crusaders pass through the area and discover a bunch of Eastern Orthodox saints for the first time. Local legends &amp; religious tales get translated &amp; passed around the campfires with embellishments each step of the way. In the process stories about one Roman equestrian are confused with another (possibly they both had similar names?). Boom, St George is the guy who defeated the dragon. </p><p><br /></p><p>Clerics traveling with these soldiers see a chance to raise morale,&nbsp; and say that the spirit of St. George is fighting alongside them,&nbsp; victories ensue,&nbsp; and pretty quickly Saint George is the patron state of an island on the outer edge of the Roman world which he&nbsp; never visited and may not have ever even heard of.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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