St Patrick's Day

Origin and history

Patrick lived in the fifth century. In his own Latin writing, the Confessio, he tells how at sixteen he was captured by Irish pirates from his home in Britain and taken to Ireland as a slave, where he worked for six years as a herdsman before escaping home. Later he returned to Ireland as a missionary bishop. His feast falls on 17 March, the traditional date of his death, and became an official feast day in the early 17th century. Many legends grew up around him, such as his using a three-leaved shamrock to explain the Trinity and driving the snakes out of Ireland.

Patrick is the foremost patron saint of Ireland.

Customs

• Church services, parades and festivals.
• Wearing green or a shamrock.
• Because the day falls in Lent, the Lenten fast was historically lifted for the day.

How traditions differ

Saint Patrick's Day is observed by the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion (especially the Church of Ireland), the Eastern Orthodox Church and Lutheran churches. It is a public holiday in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

In the library

Works: St. Patrick's Writings

Great Lives: Saint Patrick

More in Lent

Shrove Tuesday · Ash Wednesday · Lent · St Joseph's Day · The Annunciation