Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick, is a religious and cultural holiday held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick, the foremost patron saint of Ireland.
Saint Patrick depicted in a stained-glass window at Saint Benin's Church, Ireland
Traditional Saint Patrick's Day badges from the early 20th century, Museum of Country Life in County Mayo
According to legend, Saint Patrick used the three-leaved shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity to Irish pagans.
Sydney Opera House lit up green in honour of Saint Patrick in Sydney, Australia
Saint Patrick was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, the other patron saints being Brigid of Kildare and Columba. Patrick was never formally canonised, having lived before the current laws of the Catholic Church in such matters. Nevertheless, he is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church, the Church of Ireland, and in the Eastern Orthodox Church, where he is regarded as equal-to-the-apostles and Enlightener of Ireland.
Stained-glass window of St. Patrick from Saint Patrick Catholic Church, Junction City, Ohio, United States
The reputed burial place of Saint Patrick in Downpatrick
Late Roman Britain
"Patrick going to Tara", illustration from a 1904 book
