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14 Unknown Facts about St Patrick’s Day
He’s not officially a saint
St. Patrick’s never actually had any Pope canonize him. He’s not alone on that is
it was the Catholic custom a thousand years ago to proclaim saints on a
regional level – Patrick was declared saint by the people and it’s been this way
ever since. Some other churches do have him as an official saint, though.
Via: broadsheet.ie
And he’s not Patrick at all
The saint’s real name was Maewyn Succat – much less ordinary and much more realistic.
Via: stpatrickstoronto.com
Such a dreamer
As you probably realize, St. Patrick was enslaved and brought to Ireland. While
in captivity, he had a dream – something told him to look for the closest port
he could find and leave Ireland. He obeyed only to get another dream after a
few years – this time, it ordered him to go back to the island. The Irish folk
were said to plead: “We beg you holy youth that you shall come and shall walk
again among us.” So Patrick became a French missionary to Ireland.
Via: pinterest.com
Like a boss
Patrick was enslaved more than once while in Ireland; additionally, as the
previous slide suggested, he did disobey his slave master and escape from
captivity. He also supposedly had some beef with druids – what a boss!
St. Patrick’s life and teachings are well-recorded on a website funded by the
State. You can look it up to find many believable sources. However, according
to the website, some negative parts of his story were purposely cut out in order
to make St. Patrick look more successful than he was in reality.
Via: medievalhistories.com
Ireland’s not the only place
Labrador and Newfoundland, two Canadian provinces, also have a bank holiday
on St. Patrick’s day, but it’s not all – the Caribbean island of Montserrat
celebrates it too. Montserrat only has a few thousands of people living on it, but many of them
are emigrants from Ireland who came to the island 300 years ago. The
inhabitants celebrate for more than a week, indulging in a special dinner and
holding a church service.
Via: biuro-eskapada.pl
No green beer to be had until lately
The drinking craze that ensues in Irish cities on St. Patrick’s day currently is not
too good, either, but people used to exaggerate their reaction towards the
celebration in the very opposite direction. Until the 1960s, there was only one
place in Dublin, the RDS Dog Show, where you could grab a beer on March 17th.
There was a complete ban on alcohol on Saint Patrick’s day.
Via: ingenioustravel.com
But folks found ways to intoxicate themselves, still
According to the New York Times report from 1860, at the parade organized to
celebrate St. Patrick’s day “there were a great many persons very much
intoxicated”. The reporter carries on to note down that he saw:
“…officers waiting on men and women in all stages of intoxication, from that
balmy condition in which a man swears eternal friendship to all the world, and
is anxious to embrace everyone he meets, to that in which he is unable to walk
without tying knots in his legs, though supported by an official friend on either
side.”
Via: blog.homeexchange.com
Snakey bullshit
Ireland is well-known not to be home to any snakes or creatures that would
resemble them. However, some claimed they could be a metaphor designating
druids or Pagans. The truth is far from that – snakes were first referenced in
connection with St. Patrick as late as a century ago. And no, there were no
Pagans anywhere near.
Via: zoo-co.com
Post-mortem pals with St. Brigid
The probable place of St. Patrick’s burial is Down Cathedral; St. Brigid is also
said to lie next to the Irish saint, having been associated with him numerous
times. Patrick is said to have been the one to baptize Brigid’s mother, a fellow
slave. There were fierce fights when the decision on where Patrick’s corpse
would be buried had to be taken, but fortunately, a flood impeded the Irish
from spilling too much blood.
Via: stbofficer.catholic.edu.au
Green is NOT the color
Actually, the color everyone should be wearing is blue. The sympathy towards
green is said to have emerged about 1798, the time of the great Irish rebellion.
The United Irishmen decided it would be good rep to connect the saint with
green, the color that appears in abundance in the Irish folklore.
Via: bmpromotional.com
Exported first parade
The first parade was held by Irish, it’s true, but they were Irish on American soil
– immigrants who wanted to do justice to their heritage. 27 patriots organized
the parade in Boston in 1737.
Via: stpatricksday2016.xyz
No love for the shamrock
You’ve probably seen the Taoiseach endow the current US president with a
beautiful bowl of shamrock? Well, he never gets anywhere near it. The
shamrock is done away with by the Secret Service – the president cannot be
given food or flowers to ensure his security.
Via: irishtimes.com
It’s on Edna Kenny
Edna Kenny was the minister of tourism back in 1995, when the Irish came up
with the week-long St Patrick’s Day Festival. One of their better ideas, no?
Via: independent.ie