Saint Patrick Facts You Must Know before St. Patrick’s Day

Saint Patrick is known for his works, 

The Confessio- a spiritual autobiography 

The Letter to Coroticus- a denunciation of British mistreatment of Irish Christians.

Do you want to learn more Saint Patrick facts? This article is for you. Here you can find everything from who was Saint Patrick to how did St. Patrick die!

Who is St. Patrick?

Who is St. Patrick and what did he do? St. Patrick is a 5th century Romano-British Christian missionary who is known for bringing Christianity to Ireland. He is also the primary patron saint of Ireland. 

History of St. Patrick

We have listed some of the important saint Patrick’s history facts for you!

Where and when was the original St. Patrick born? He is from a Romanized family and was born in Britain near the end of the fourth century. Historians could not verify most of his life because of insufficient sources, however some suggest his birth name as Maewyn Succat. The name Patrick was later taken on during his religious journey. 

When he was 16, he was kidnapped by Irish pirates who were attacking his family’s estate. He was brought into slavery in Ireland where he served for six years. He was believed to have worked as a shepherd and this is where he became a devout Christian. He believed that his enslavement was God’s test of his faith. 

According to his writing, he had a dream in which God told him to escape from his master and leave Ireland. Therefore, after three days of sailing and wandering in France for about 28 days, he fled his master and reunited with his family in Britain. 

How did St.Patrick die? Saint Patrick died appx. in 461 A.D. in Saul, Ireland. He was said to have been buried in the town of Downpatrick. 

How Did St. Patrick Incorporate Christianity into Ireland?

Who is st Patrick and why do we celebrate? Patrick was again reported to have another revelation in which an angel tells him to go back to Ireland as a missionary. At that time, he was also done with his religious training that lasted for more than 15 years.

After his ordination as a priest, he went back to Ireland with two major missions:

• To minister to Christians who are already living in Ireland.
• To begin to convert the Irish.

Since Patrick was already familiar with the Irish language and culture, He did not attempt to eradicate the native Irish beliefs. Instead, he decided to incorporate the existing Irish rituals into his lessons on Christianity. 

The Irish honors their gods with fire, therefore he used bonfires to celebrate Easter.

The Irish considered ‘Sun’ as a powerful Irish symbol, so he superimposed a sun and Christian cross and created the Celtic cross. 

Along with other missionaries, he also was writing and performing numerous baptisms in order to spread Christianity. 

Slowly, the number of Christians on the Island increased. 

Now, he is known as the patron saint of Ireland, but he was never canonized by the Catholic church. During the era he lived, there are no formal canonization processes to be followed. After several years of becoming a priest and helping to preach Christianity in Ireland, he was acclaimed to be a saint. 

Saint Patrick Day Facts

1) Saint Patrick’s Day is celebrated on March 17 annually. For more than 1,000 years, the Irish have observed Saint Patrick’s Day as a religious holiday. 

2) On Saint Patrick’s Day, people usually attend church in the morning and perform rituals along with their family. People observe this day by wearing green and serving traditional foods ham and cabbage. 

3) Leprechauns are considered mischievous Irish fairies and are commonly associated with St. Patrick’s Day. This folklore was originally called ‘lobaircin’. It is believed that these small-bodies creatures serve good and evil using their superpowers. 

4) In 1737, the first-ever St. Patrick’s Day celebration was held in Boston.

5) In order to observe St. Patrick’s Day, the Chicago River is dyed green on the morning of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.