While in captivity turned to religion. He escaped slavery and later returned to Ireland as a missonary, determined to convert Ireland to Christianity. He using the shape of a shamrock he explained the Holy Trinity.

He was ordained as Bishop of Ireland in 431. He is said to have died in 461 and to be buried in Downpatrick, Ireland. St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin was built in the 12th Century. Folk lore says St.Patrick drummed the snakes out of Ireland and into the sea.

The St. Patrick's Day custom came to America in 1737. That was the first year St. Patrick's Day was publicly celebrated in this country, in Boston.

St.Patrick's Day Main Page