Why does every 17th of March seem to be the exclusive property of the Irish? What is it that motivates hundreds of people to dress in green, consume massive quantities of corned beef and go dancing through the streets? The easy answer is “St. Patrick’s Day,” but who was this St. Patrick and why do we (especially those of us with Irish blood) celebrate him existence with corned beef, shamrocks and great Irish beer? Like the mystic Ireland from which these traditions hail, St. Patrick is shrouded in mystery.
Roman Britain, Celtic Ireland
Very little concrete information exists regarding St. Patrick. Educated guesses place his life-span from about AD 400 to AD 460. The medieval chronicles of the Annals of Ulster, however, suggest that Patrick was born in 373 and lived until 493, a claim viewed with skepticism by many historians. Whatever the actual information, it is generally accepted that St. Patrick lived in Britain a not long after the withdrawal of the Roman legions in the late 4th and early 5th centuries.
St. Patrick
Contrary to popular belief, St. Patrick was not actually Irish. He was born on the British mainland as “Maewyn Succat” (he adopted the name “Patricius,” the Latinized form of Patrick, when he became a priest). His father was a deacon, though the family does not appear to have been particularly religious. When he was about sixteen, Patrick was captured by pirates and sold into slavery in Ireland, where he worked as a herdsman. Patrick himself wrote that his faith grew in captivity, and when he fled after six years of enslavement, he resolved to become a priest.
Patrick studied in several monasteries in Europe, then returned to Ireland to convert the pagan population. There is severe conflict between the various chroniclers as to what exactly Patrick did in Ireland (one of these errant historians is responsible for the story that Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland; to this day, he is the patron of people who fear snakes and can be invoked against serpents of all kinds. He’s also the patron saint of engineers – go figure above). While Patrick’s individual actions may remain unknown, it is agreed that his efforts to convert Ireland were successful, and Ireland has remain a staunchly Christian (specifically, Roman Catholic) country ever since.
Patrick’s evangelization is also the source of one of the most important symbols of St. Patrick’s Day, the shamrock.
The Shamrock
According to tradition (those creative medieval historians) St. Patrick was attempting to explain the Holy Trinity to the Irish and hit upon the perfect metaphor: a clover leaf. Although the three persons of God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) are separate personalities (just as the three lobes of the clover leaf are separate portions of the leaf), they are all fundamentally part of the same entity. This, according to the chroniclers, was immensely helpful to Patrick in his attempts to convert the Irish (whether or not it actually happened is open to discussion. This use of the shamrock spread and today it is the unofficial symbol of Ireland and all things Irish (the other unofficial symbol is, of course, a pint of Guinness).
St. Patrick in Modern Times
Although St. Patrick has been venerated in Ireland since the 6th century, St. Patrick’s Day did not take on its current connotations until it migrated across the Atlantic Ocean with the Irish immigrants who came to the United States. America’s first public celebration of St. Patrick’s Day took place in 1736 in Boston, a city renown even today for its Irish pride (their baseball team is the Celtics, after all). After Boston, most major urban centers, especially on the Eastern seaboard, began to hold St. Patrick’s Day celebrations as their Irish populations increased due to immigration. New York City began celebrating in 1756, Philadelphia in 1771, Savannah, Georgia in 1813. As the immigrants moved further into the country, more and more cities began celebrating. Chicago’s first St. Patrick’s Day was in 1843, and by 1852, St. Patrick’s Day had reached San Francisco.
During the 1800s Irish immigrants were often discriminated against, mostly because of their religion. White Anglo-Saxon Protestants (WASPs) made up the majority of the American population before Irish immigration began, and when they arrived, Irish immigrants were viewed as unfit for any work besides hard, unskilled labor. They were also characterized as stupid or easily led because of the traditional Catholic deference to the dictates of the pope. Because WASP American society did not accept them, the Irish banded together in an effort to survive, resulting in ethnic Irish neighborhoods in many urban centers and the glorification of all things Irish, especially St. Patrick.
St. Patrick’s Day, therefore, was essentially an Irish rallying point against hostile American society, and as the Irish became more integrated with society and more successful, St. Patrick’s Day celebrations grew more and more ostentatious, their glory reflecting the achievements of Irish-Americans. Today the biggest St. Patrick’s Day outside of Ireland itself is that in New York City, which in 2006 included more than 150,000 marchers. St. Patrick’s Day has become more about being Irish than about being Roman Catholic and/or a devotee of St. Patrick, so most St. Patrick’s Day celebrations have lost their religious connotations. However, they have not lost any of their passion, their fun, or their Irish pride - in 2005, Chicago dyed the Chicago River green in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day (see photo below).
Chicago dyed the Chicago River green
in celebration of St. Patrick's Day
Whatever the historical origins of St. Patrick’s Day, today’s festival is more than a celebration of a saint’s day – it is the recognition that even a persecuted minority can rise to a point of prestige where their festivals are known and loved by a whole country. And let’s face it – who doesn’t love an excuse to dye a river green? 
Works Consulted
"Irish Diaspora." Wikipedia. Accessed 10 March 2007.
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_i mmigration#United_States
"Patron Saints Index: Patrick." Catholic Community Forum. Accessed 10 March 2007.
www.catholic-forum.com/SAINTS/s aintp01.htm
"Saint Patrick." Wikipedia. Accessed 10 March 2007.
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Patr ick
"Saint Patrick’s Day." Wikipedia. Accessed 10 March 2007.
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Pat rick 27s_Day
"St. Patrick’s Profile." Irish Abroad – St. Patrick’s Day 2006. Accessed 10 March 2007.
www.irishabroad.com/stpatrick/li fe/profile.asp
