3 1. St Patrick


We know about the life of St Patrick only through his own writings called The Confession. In this he explains why he came to Ireland. He tells of how he was brought to Ireland from somewhere in Britain. He was captured by Irish raiders at the age of 16 and forced to work as a shepherd. He escaped six years later, around AD 432, and returned to Britain. In The Confession, he wrote that he had a dream that he should return to Ireland and convert the Irish to Christianity. Sometime in the middle of the fifth century he returned to Ireland. He spent the remainder of his life converting and baptising people. He believed that if he converted the kings the rest of the tuath would follow and also convert. He managed to convert some people but the druids did not like his new religion. St Patrick states that he lived in ‘daily expectation of murder’ so there must have been some resistance to this new religion. However, there is no further evidence of Christians being killed.


Fig 3.14 St Patrick


DiScOvErInG HiStOrY C. Early Christian Ireland


As we read in Chapter 2: Ancient Rome, Christianity began to spread throughout the Roman Empire in the first century AD. As Britain was part of the Roman Empire, Irish Celts came into contact with Christians in Britain. This contact through trading and raiding meant that by the fifth century there were Christians living in Ireland. We know this because in AD 431 a bishop called Palladius was sent by Pope Celestine to the Irish ‘who believe in Christ’. Unfortunately we know nothing of what happened to him when he reached Ireland. It is St Patrick who is thought to have spread Christianity in Ireland.


✣ By the way


Some historians believe that many of the stories about St Patrick are actually about Palladius.


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