Which is the oldest St George’s church in England?

In fact, there are more than 250 churches of St George in the Church of England - including national landmarks such as St George’s Chapel in Windsor, the setting for many major royal events.

But which is the original St George’s church? 

While these things are often contested and some churches’ patronal names may have changed over time, one of the strongest claims is from St George’s church in Crowhurst, Surrey.

The practice of dedicating churches to St George became more common after 1348 when Edward III founded the Order of the Garter, with St George as its patron, and George came to replace Edward the Confessor as Patron Saint of England. 

However, the parish church in Crowhurst, Surrey, is known to have been dedicated to St George since 1191, during the reign Richard I. 

Devotion to St George was very popular among later Plantagenet kings, especially Edward I and Edward III, but Richard I is said to have adopted the Cross of St George as a maritime flag from the Italian city of Genoa.

It is thought likely that there was a church at Crowhurst even before its dedication to St George in 1191 and the ancient yew in the churchyard – possibly as old as 4,000 years – suggests it was a significant site long before that. 

There are also some other churches in England which now have St George in their name which may be even older than Crowhurst but with less certainty over the date of dedication to the saint. 

The church itself is packed with history: there are marks around the doorway believed to have been made by bowmen sharpening their arrow heads. It was damaged in the Civil War and more than 150 years later in 1805, when the hollow centre of the yew tree was being carved out to create a small room, a cannon ball was found wedged in the trunk. 

There are representations of St George all around including a Victorian window in the Vestry depicting the legendary fight with the dragon. Celebrating St George’s Day itself has long been a key event in the village which, under a longstanding tradition, is decked in flags.

“On that day the village is smothered in red and white,” explains parishioner Jenny Bond. 

“A lot of people do drive through the village purely to see it, which is always nice.”

The church itself will be hosting a special gathering on Sunday April 26 with a reenactment of the story of St George and the dragon and, of course, raising a glass to toast the patron saint.

“It reminds us that we all tread a path that others have trodden before us,” explains the vicar, the Rev Sue Bosley.

“So we continue the Christian story of those faithful, worshippers who loved their nation before we came, and we continue with that mission today, in the village.”

Parishioner John Young, whose family have farmed in the area for at least five generations, adds: “I think it's important that we have such a nice church and it is open to the public every day and it’s important that people can come here and sit and contemplate.”

Lay reader Fiona Lock says the church’s history and its connection with St George is a living inspiration.  

“It’s just divine,” she remarks. “You’re always wanting to know more about what is going on and what has gone on,” 

Fiona’s husband Simon, the churchwarden, has many responsibilities but has not, so far, had to take on any dragons.

“St George was a real person, that’s confirmed in history obviously, and I think the dragon was more a symbolic thing of the fight between good and evil, the Christian faith and the persecution that was going on at the time,” he explains.
“I don’t actually think the dragon existed …but I could be wrong!”