Saint George

Saint George was a Roman soldier of Greek descent who was sentenced to death for refusing to recant his Christian faith. He became one of the most venerated saints in Christianity, and is the patron saint of England.

The legend of Saint George and the Dragon was first recorded in the 11th century. The tradition tells that a fierce dragon was causing panic at the city of Silene, Libya, at the time George arrived there. In order to prevent the dragon from devastating the city, they gave two sheep each day to the dragon, but when the sheep were not enough they were forced to sacrifice humans instead of the two sheep. The human to be sacrificed was elected by the city's own people and that time the king's daughter was chosen to be sacrificed but no one was willing to take her place. George saved the girl by slaying the dragon with a lance. The king was so grateful that he offered him treasures as a reward for saving his daughter's life, but George refused it and instead he gave these to the poor. The people of the city were so amazed at what they had witnessed that they became Christians and were all baptized.

camberwell

The Doomesday book (1086) speaks of the settlement of Cambrewelle with its Saxon church - St Giles. The name may derive from the Old English Cumberwell or Comberwell, meaning 'Well of the Britons'. An alternative theory suggests the name may mean 'Cripple Well', and that the settlement developed as a hamlet where people from the City of London were expelled when they had a contagious disease like leprosy, for treatment by the church and the clean, healing waters from the wells. Up to the mid-19th century, Camberwell was visited by Londoners for its rural tranquillity and the reputed healing properties of its mineral springs. Like much of inner South London, Camberwell was transformed by the arrival of the railways in the 1860s.

St George’s Church

St George's was the first daughter church to St Giles. It was established in 1824 and reflected the location and intensity of development, and the increase in population in the area.

Trinity in Camberwell

St George’s Camberwell has had a close relationship with Trinity College, Cambridge dating back over 130 years.

The college established a mission building in the Parish which was rebuilt in 1981.

This work at the heart of the community goes on and you can read all about it on the Trinity centre website.