gifts.ie Blog

The history of Saint Patrick’s Day revolves around the life of St. Patrick who at the age of 16 was taken captive by a group of Irish raiders who transported him to Ireland where he was enslaved for six years. Due to his dire circumstance, the man who would become St. Patrick turned to religion as a way to comfort himself from the fact that he was a slave. Eventually, St. Patrick would be freed where he moved to Gaul and studied in the monastery under St. Germain, bishop of Auxerre, for twelve years. Once ordained as a priest, St. Patrick was sent to Ireland with the mission of ministering to the few Christians in Ireland and to convert the predominantly pagan Irish residents.

In Ireland, St. Patrick found success in converting many Irish people to Christianity. By incorporating traditional Irish ritual into his lessons of Christianity, he was able to have great success in converting Irish pagans into Christians. Considering that most Irish people at the time practiced a nature-based pagan religion, St. Patrick was able to successfully incorporate natural symbols to explain Christian concepts. This is best exemplified by the symbol of the shamrock, a major St. Patrick’s Day symbol that St. Patrick used to explain the Holy Trinity. By showing the three-leafed shamrock, St. Patrick was able to detail how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit were able to exist as separate elements of the same entity.

After thirty years of exemplary service, St. Patrick left Ireland to retire to County Down. He would later die in AD 461 on March 17, which has been commemorated as St. Patrick’s Day ever since. For thousands of years, the Irish celebrated this day as a religious holiday. Families would attend church in the morning and have a celebration in the afternoon. Typical traditions would include eating the traditional Irish meal of Irish bacon and cabbage following by festive dancing and drinking. St. Patrick’s Day would make its first appearance in America where the first St. Patrick’s Day parade in the world took place in New York City on March 17, 1762. The parade was made up of Irish soldiers serving in the English military who wanted to celebrate their roots. Eventually, St. Patrick’s Day would become a major part of American culture. A formerly despised immigration group, the Irish would celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in the early to mid twentieth century in America, as a show of strength and solidarity to their Irish roots. As the Irish became more accepted in American culture, St. Patrick’s Day became a general celebration of Irish culture and the Irish people. Irish symbols like leprechauns, shamrocks, and the rap band House of Pain would become major St. Patrick’s Day symbols in America throughout the years.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everyone!