St Patrick’s Day has become one of the most popular events on the calendar, for pubs and bars, with revellers all over the world gearing up for celebrations which are likely to be described as “drunken.”
Yes, in countries from New Zealand to America right now thousands of merrymakers will be preparing to celebrate all that is Irish by donning green outfits and watching traditional Irish parades to honour the Saint of the Emerald Isle.
It may come as something of a surprise to those planning on celebrating Patrick’s Day in the traditional way, then, that most of the “traditions” they are participating in are fairly modern to say the least. In fact, several staples of the day are only dubiously linked to Ireland at best – starting with Saint Patrick himself!
While St Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, many will be surprised to learn that he was not, in fact, Irish. He was born a Roman Briton and lived in Scotland until the age of sixteen, at which point he was captured and sold into slavery by Irish pirates before becoming a priest.
A priest who has not yet been canonized by a pope, unfortunately – therefore debunking the myth that Saint Patrick is, in fact, a saint at all!
Sadly, the quashing of St Patrick’s Day tradition does not end there, as the colour green has never historically been associated with the man himself. Originally, Ireland and St Patrick were represented by a specific shade known as St. Patrick’s blue, and to this day it is used as the colour of the Irish Presidential standard.
Green only became the colour of Ireland and Patrick thanks to Irish Nationals attempting to distance themselves from Britain and the deep blue found on the Union Jack.
So, to recap we have an Irish saint who was neither Irish nor a saint, and we are all dressed in the wrong colour entirely. At least we can recover from these revelations with a traditional St Patrick’s Day drink, surely?
Wrong again! From 1905 until 1966 the only venue likely to offer alcohol was the local church, and that was only thanks to Holy Communion. Pubs in Ireland were not allowed to sell alcohol on March 17th as consumers were expected to view the day as a holy obligation rather than an excuse for a knees-up.
In essence, those wishing to truly spend a traditional St Patrick’s Day should really re-name March 17th as Not-Quite-Saint Patrick’s Day, wear blue, and go to church completely sober – in Scotland.
However, it seems much more likely that the majority of us will don green, grab a Guinness and proceed to the route of our nearest St Patrick’s Day parade in blissful ignorance of the fact that this particular tradition was established in Boston, 1737!
So now you know the myths behind St Patrick’s Day, you can impress your friends with the depth of your knowledge over a lovely pint of the black stuff! Have a good one wherever you’re celebrating today!
Previous Post
Liverpool Fans Complain About Season Ticket Price Hike
