Saint Paddy and the Snakes in Ireland
St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, and St. Patrick, as much as the Irish flag is, is identified with the country. St. Patrick, or St. Paddy as he is sometimes referred to, enjoys the fierce devotion of the Irish around the globe. St. Patrick was an Englishman, however. When he was a young man, he was captured by Irish raiders and was brought to Ireland as a slave. After six years of captivity, he was able to escape back home. He entered the priesthood, became a bishop and returned to Ireland.
A famous story about St. Patrick is about him driving away all the snakes from Ireland. This is a quite famous story, a story further fueled by the fact that there really are no snakes in Ireland today.
There are several versions to this story. There is the dramatic version with him standing atop a hill, holding his cane, ordering all the snakes in the island to leave Ireland and never to return again. The snakes all rushed into the sea and never came back.
Another version states that an old snake refused to leave the island. St. Patrick had to use cunning and wit to drive away this wise, old snake. St. Patrick brought a box and asked the snake to get in the box. The old snake would not and insisted that the box was too small. Patrick said it was the right size. To prove that the box really is small, the snake got into the box. The moment the snake got in the box, St. Patrick sealed the box and threw it into the sea.
There are a lot of stories linking St. Patrick and Ireland, but this snake-driving story is the best-known. If you ask any Irish why there are no snakes in Ireland, you’ll probably hear about how St. Patrick drove the snakes away many years ago.