St George's Cross in Other European Countries
Saint George is also the patron saint of Georgia (below), Greece, and various European regions or cities. The flag of Georgia accompanies the Cross by four small red crosses (below) and it used in the flags of two other European countries. Since the 13th century it is a traditional symbol in the Kingdom of Aragon, where it appears in the flags of the provinces of Huesca, Zaragoza, and Teruel, and in the coat of arms of Aragon. On the flag of the city of Barcelona it is quartered with the arms of the Crown of Aragon. Within modern Germany it is the symbol of Freiburg and it was used on the coat of arms of the Archbishopric of Trier.
The Cross is used extensively across Northern Italy. It is the symbol of Bologna, Padua, Genoa, and most notably of Milan where it is often called the "Cross of St. Ambrose". It is also an official symbol of Lega Nord, a Milan-based Italian political party that pursues North Italian independence.
St George's Cross should not be confused with the similar emblem of the Red Cross. Like the Swiss flag, the Red Cross symbol has arms of equal length (greek cross) that do not touch any of the flag edges. St George's Cross touches all four edges of its field.
The first Hungarian king Saint Stephen led his army under Saint George's flag.
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