Click the speaker to hear the midi "A Bash in the Tunnel & Octopus' Pipes"
from Ancient
Music of Ireland
Use this to link to my St. Patrick's Day site
http://carla-online.com/seasonal/stpat/
Saint
Patrick's Day According to the Dictionary
Saint
Pat·rick's Day\-'pa-triks-\n(1844) : March 17 observed by
the Roman Catholic Church in honor of St. Patrick and celebrated
in Ireland in commemoration of his death.
Above references from: Infopedia CD
The
Legend of the Blarney Stone
One
local legend claims that an old women, saved from drowning by
a king of Munster, rewarded him with a spell, that if he would
kiss a stone on the castle's top, he would gain a speech that
would win all to him. It is known however, when and how the word
Blarney entered the English language and the dictionary. During
the time of Queen Elizabeth I, Dermot McCarthy, the ruler of the
castle, was required to surrender his fortress to the Queen as
proof of his loyalty. He said he would be delighted to do so,
but something always happened at the last moment to prevent his
surrender. His excuses became so frequent and indeed so plausible
that the official who had been demanding the castle in the name
of the Queen became a joke at the Court. Once, when the eloquent
excuses of McCarthy were repeated to the Queen, she said "Odds
bodikins, more Blarney talk!" The term Blarney has thus come to
mean 'the ability to influence and coax with fair words and soft
speech without giving offense.
Saint
Patrick's Day Knowledge
The
first St. Patrick's Day celebration in America was in 1737 hosted
by the Charitable Irish Society of Boston. The second was established
in 1780 by the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick in Philadelphia.
It is not known if March 17 is celebrated because it is the date
of St. Patrick's birth or his death. Some claim it is both, others
say neither. As to St. Patrick's birthplace, the only definite
statement is that he most certainly was not born in Ireland. He
founded 165 churches and started a school with each one. St. Patrick
is widely acknowledged as the patron saint of Ireland.
There
are no snakes in all of Ireland thanks to St. Patrick. Of all
the legends surrounding this popular figure, the most long-lived
is the story of St. Patrick driving the snakes from Ireland. As
the population of Ireland looked on, St. Patrick pounded a drum
and banished the snakes.
The
shamrock is seen everywhere on St. Patrick's Day. St. Patrick
used the shamrock when he preached the doctrine of the Trinity
as a symbol of its great mystery. Today, it is widely worn in
Ireland and America to celebrate Irish heritage. In fact, several
million shamrock plants are grown in County Cork, Ireland, and
shipped all over the world for St. Patrick's Day.
Facts
About St. Patrick
St. Patrick
is Ireland's patron saint.
He is
also one of the most well known saints in Catholicism.
St. Patrick
was the son of a minor Roman official.
Born
in western Britain at the turn of the 5th century.
The mountain
Croagh Patrick in county Mayo is sacred to his memory.
Legend
says that it was here that the saint rang his bell and the
snakes of Ireland fled.
St. Patrick
was captured by Irish raiders at the age of 16 and spent six
years in Ireland in slavery, working as a shepherd. He eventually
escaped to France where he trained as a cleric. He returned
to Ireland in about 432AD and spent 30 or so years preaching
and founding churches. In 433AD, he challenged the High King
of Tara, Laoghaire, by lighting the paschal or Easter fires
on top of the Hill of Slane against the pagan king's command.
Laoghaire was so impressed with Patrick's devotion and sense
of purpose that he let him continue his mission unobstructed.
Saint
Patrick's Day According to the Dictionary 
