St George's Cross - St George's Cross in Georgia

St George's Cross in Georgia

The flag with St George (who is the patron saint of Georgia) cross was used in 5th century by the Georgian King Vakhtang Gorgasali as the symbol of his state and nation. In 13th century Queen Tamar of Georgia used the St. George flag during her campaign against Seljuk Turks. The four Jerusalem crosses were later added by King George V of Georgia who drove out the Mongols from Georgia in 1334. The flag fell out during the Russian annexation of Georgia and abolition of the Georgian monarchy. However the flag was revived by the Georgian patriotic movement in the 1990s. A majority of Georgians, including the influential Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II of the Georgian Orthodox Church, supported the restoration of medieval flag of Georgia. The flag was finally adopted by the Georgian parliament on January 14, 2004. It was formally endorsed by a presidential decree signed by Mikheil Saakashvili on January 25, following his election as President of Georgia.