The
Royal Society of St. George,
127 Sandgate Road,
Folkestone,
Kent
CT20 2BH
Tel : +44 (0)1303 241795
Fax: +44 (0)1303
211710
e-mail:
info@rssg.u-net.com
website: http://www.royalsocietyofstgeorge.com
It
calls itself "the most patriotic society in the land" and it has Her Majesty
the Queen as its Patron. The Society has some thirty eight branches at home and
forty branches overseas. Every branch in the Society is willing and able to donate
money to whichever causes it selects. The branches' balance sheets reveal that
a very great deal of money is used for the good of the land and its people. The
New York Society of St. George and others in the Far East help English people
who are in need of assistance and those who are stranded, to return home. The
Headquarters are particularly involved in helping young people to obtain education
and to meet their practical needs through the Society's own Charitable Trust.
These are very practical ways in which the Society works, but when one studies the objectives, aims and mission of the Society, then these present a very different challenge. English people are now genuinely concerned that the very things which made England great are being whittled away. We talk here of good manners, business ethics, trust and honesty. English history is no longer given prominence in many schools. There is also a very great need for children to be taught self respect and, in particular, to respect others. To think of others rather than themselves is paramount.
We are a non political Society, though as we move into the future we must surely be concerned about what is happening around us. Scotland and Wales are both becoming independent. But what is happening to England? Who speaks for England? English people should be concerned about the consequent loss of any national identity. The conscious knowledge and awareness of English history and heritage are in real danger of being consigned to the scrap heap in favour of a European identity. So the Royal Society of St. George now has to apply itself to these serious matters and recall these words from our Charter: "To combat all activities likely to undermine the strength of England and the Commonwealth".
We need members who are at one with our aims. The more members we have the stronger the voice of the Society will be as it stands against those that undermine our beloved country, against those who are willing to discard our heritage, our Monarchy and our laws. It would appear that English people are being asked to give up their freedom and to be under the rule of foreign powers. Never! In conclusion, we are indebted to the late Enoch Powell for the following definition of what is English: "English is an adjective that denotes a particular people or not to be mealy mouthed, a particular race". Others may speak and read English - more or less - but it is our language - not theirs. It was made in England by the English and it remains our contribution however it is learned or used.
We know when we enter England and when we leave it - and it means something real to us, when we say of it, "This is my own, my native land". This England is the stage upon which the drama of English history was played and the setting within which the English became conscious of themselves as a people. No one knows "Through what wild centuries, roves back the rose." We shall never disentangle, identify or measure the various sources which, since Neolithic times, have contributed to the gene pool of the English people. Whatever they were, English people can still recognise and identify, one with another. We can be sure that the plays of Shakespeare strike the same emotional chords in us today. There is a singular happiness of the English, which we may well record; that singular happiness is their gift of being governed with their consent. The essential ingredient of that consent is the implicit assumption of a common identity of interest and purpose which overrides differences of opinion.
Patriotism does not come easily when one is confronted with the arrogance and imposing prejudices of our time. Once it was easy to cry "For Harry, England and St. George". Today that is not a cry for cowards, no passport for popular approval or prompt reward. IT IS NONE THE WORSE FOR THAT!
These are very practical ways in which the Society works, but when one studies the objectives, aims and mission of the Society, then these present a very different challenge. English people are now genuinely concerned that the very things which made England great are being whittled away. We talk here of good manners, business ethics, trust and honesty. English history is no longer given prominence in many schools. There is also a very great need for children to be taught self respect and, in particular, to respect others. To think of others rather than themselves is paramount.
We are a non political Society, though as we move into the future we must surely be concerned about what is happening around us. Scotland and Wales are both becoming independent. But what is happening to England? Who speaks for England? English people should be concerned about the consequent loss of any national identity. The conscious knowledge and awareness of English history and heritage are in real danger of being consigned to the scrap heap in favour of a European identity. So the Royal Society of St. George now has to apply itself to these serious matters and recall these words from our Charter: "To combat all activities likely to undermine the strength of England and the Commonwealth".
We need members who are at one with our aims. The more members we have the stronger the voice of the Society will be as it stands against those that undermine our beloved country, against those who are willing to discard our heritage, our Monarchy and our laws. It would appear that English people are being asked to give up their freedom and to be under the rule of foreign powers. Never! In conclusion, we are indebted to the late Enoch Powell for the following definition of what is English: "English is an adjective that denotes a particular people or not to be mealy mouthed, a particular race". Others may speak and read English - more or less - but it is our language - not theirs. It was made in England by the English and it remains our contribution however it is learned or used.
We know when we enter England and when we leave it - and it means something real to us, when we say of it, "This is my own, my native land". This England is the stage upon which the drama of English history was played and the setting within which the English became conscious of themselves as a people. No one knows "Through what wild centuries, roves back the rose." We shall never disentangle, identify or measure the various sources which, since Neolithic times, have contributed to the gene pool of the English people. Whatever they were, English people can still recognise and identify, one with another. We can be sure that the plays of Shakespeare strike the same emotional chords in us today. There is a singular happiness of the English, which we may well record; that singular happiness is their gift of being governed with their consent. The essential ingredient of that consent is the implicit assumption of a common identity of interest and purpose which overrides differences of opinion.
Patriotism does not come easily when one is confronted with the arrogance and imposing prejudices of our time. Once it was easy to cry "For Harry, England and St. George". Today that is not a cry for cowards, no passport for popular approval or prompt reward. IT IS NONE THE WORSE FOR THAT!
