The figure of St. George, a saint venerated in Lydda in Palestine in the 3rd-4th centuries AD, who became known for the legend of the noble knight who defeats the dragon to save a princess, a story that spread during the medieval period. Although little is known about his life, it is known that St. George was a soldier in the Roman army and was martyred in 303 AD because he declared himself a Christian and refused to worship the emperor of Rome. The cult of St. George was approved by Pope Gelasius in the late 5th century and spread to England in the late 7th century, thanks to the Crusades.In Genoa, devotion to St. George probably spread during the war declared by Emperor Constantine against the Goths in the 6th century AD, when Genoese soldiers, led by General Belisarius, were among the most valiant of the Byzantine army. However, it was during the First Crusade in 1098 that St. George's fame spread the most because of the legend that saw him appear among the combatants during the battle against the Saracens. St. George became the symbol of the struggle between Good and Evil, and his image can also be seen on the coat of arms of the Municipality of Genoa and also on the city's glorious gonfalon once enshrined in the church of St. George in Genoa's historic center, a gonfalon that was solemnly handed over to the admiral of the Genoese fleet before setting sail against its enemies, a gonfalon that escaped a hundred battles .
