Dragon slayer

St. George fighting the dragon. by Raphael 1505

Dragon slayers are specific historical characters that have been portrayed in stories, myth and books and films the former far more ancient and the latter attempts to bring the ancient stories to a contemporary audience. Perhaps some of the most famous stories of dragonslayers are the knights of the Middle Ages which battled fierce dragon-like creatures and became epic war heroes of legend.

Slayers

Beowulf

Main Article: Beowulf

Beowulf was a legendary heroic dragon slayer of the Geats who lived from 495–583 AD. His exploits include slaying several sea reptiles and a terrestrial dragon called a grendel. Beowulf ultimately lost his life at the age of 88 from wounds he received while fighting a flying reptile that may have been a giant pterosaur. The story of Beowulf is preserved in an epic poem of the same name that is often considered to be one of the most important pieces of Anglo-Saxon literature.

Saint George

Main Article: Saint George

The tale of St. George and the Dragon was included in Jacobus de Voragine's Legenda Aurea (or Golden Legend), a collection of Saints' lives compiled around the year 1260 and translated into English and published by William Caxton in 1483.

A modern version of the legend says:

“

At the town of Silene, in Libya, there was a dragon, who was appeased by being fed two sheep a day; when these failed, the townsfolk offered by lot one of their young people. One day the lot fell on the King's daughter, who was led out to the sacrifice, dressed in her wedding gown. George appeared and transfixed the dragon with his spear and then using the Princess's girdle led the bemused dragon into the town, where it was beheaded. — Catholic Encyclopaedia

”

Other

• Beatus of Lungern (Saint Beatus) Beatenberg, Switzerland. 1^st century.
• Bienheuré (Saint Bienheuré) Vendôme, France. 3^rd century.
• Clement of Metz (Saint Clement) killed the Graoully. Metz, France. 1^st century.
• Crescentinus (Saint Crescentinus) Umbria, Italy. 3^rd century.
• Donatus of Arezzo (Saint Donatus) Arezzo, Italy. 4^th century.
• Julian of Le Mans (Saint Julian) Le Mans, France. 3^rd or 4^th century.
• Leonard of Noblac (Saint Leonard) Limousin, France. 6^th century.
• Mercurialis of Forlì (Saint Mercurialis) Romagna, Italy. 4^th century.
• Margaret of Antioch (Saint Margaret) Pisidia, Anatolia. 3^rd century.
• Martha of Bethany (Saint Martha) tamed the Tarasque. Provence, France. 1^st century.
• Quirinus of Malmedy (Saint Quirinus) Vaux-sur-Seine, France. 2^nd and 3^rd century.
• Romanus of Rouen (Saint Romain) caught the Gargouille. Rouen, France. 7^th century.
• Veranus of Cavaillon (Saint Veran) Cavaillon, France. 6^th century.