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The Society of the Friends of St George's and Descendants of the Knights of the Garter is a constituent group of the Foundation of the College of St George, Windsor Castle which is a national charity in England. The society includes more than 5,100 members worldwide (including more than 900 AmFriends members of the American Friends of St George's and Descendants of the Knights of the Garter Inc.) to "protect, preserve and enhance" the college, its St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle and the royal chivalric knighthood, the Order of the Garter. In addition to the many enhancement projects that the society helped fund since its creation, several major preservation projects were also completed. The ongoing project for 2009 is to clean and restore the chapel West Window which is one of the largest in any English church with its collection of late-medieval stained-glass. The project for 2007 was to clean and repair the chapel West Front including its 16th century stonework, turrets and flying buttresses. People interested in the society and its traditions and service may join as its members. ==History== A group known as the Association of the Descendants of the Knights of the Garter was founded in the 1920s, composed of knights (KG) and ladies (LG) of the order, and their descendants. Another group known as the Friends of St George's was founded in 1931 to support the college by raising funds to "protect, preserve and enhance" the chapel as the physical and spiritual center of the order. The two groups accomplished their missions separately until 1934 when they merged as The Society of the Friends of St George's with which is amalgamated the Association of the Descendants of the Knights of the Garter. The society was founded with the mission to continue the support of the college and historic chapel. The society shares with the order its patron Saint George the Martyr, the motto "Honi soit qui mal y pense (Shame whoever thinks it evil)," and the insignia of the garter. The society changed its name a last time in 1966 when it was designated by the Charity Commission for England and Wales as a charity. After celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2006, the society became a constituent group of the foundation in 2007 when it completed its change in corporate governance. A separate Philadelphia-based group, the Society of Descendants of Knights of the Most Noble Order of the Garter () (), was founded in 1929 according to the group, the Hereditary Society Blue Book and the Hereditary Society Community of the United States of America (). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Society of the Friends of St George's and Descendants of the Knights of the Garter」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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