Who was St Patrick? Why is he such an important figure in Irish history? What was 5th century Ireland like? Join us for a deep dive into the archaeology of Ireland’s patron saint in this fascinating discussion with Terry O’Hagan

As St Patrick’s Day is upon us, I thought this would be a fantastic opportunity to discuss the man himself with the famous Vox Hiberionacum, Terry O’Hagan. Terry is a researcher focusing on Early Irish Christianity and Early Medieval Ireland, with a particular interest in St. Patrick. In this discussion we look at the evidence that such a figure existed, what the Ireland of the 5th century might have been like, and the evidence for pre-Christian belief. We look at the contemporary landscapes, discuss where the famous saint might actually have been, and how he escaped from captivity, only to return again to Ireland. We also discuss what those earliest days of Christianity might have been like, and how he became transformed into the super saint of legend that we all know and celebrate today.

This is a really fascinating deep dive into the subject, with some fascinating tangents on landscape archaeology, belief, hagiography and early medieval Irish politics. Thanks so much to Terry for all of his time and insights. This recording was carried out over Zoom so please do forgive any little audio wobbles that might occur.

Although this St Patrick’s Day is still shadowed by the ongoing pandemic, we want to take this opportunity to wish all of you a very happy and safe day – Lá Fhéile Pádraig Sona Daoibh!

The Archaeological Landscapes of St Patrick – Key Discussion Points

• What evidence do we have that St Patrick really existed? – 1 min 18 secs
• What was his background, who was he and where did he come from? – 5 min 40 secs
• St Patrick was captured by a raid as a young man, do we know who was doing the raiding at the time? – 8 min 19 secs
• What was Ireland like at the time he was captured, what do we know archaeologically about  that period between the Iron Age and the early medieval period, how did people live? – 10 min 25 secs
• What do we know about what people believed before Christianity arrived in Ireland – 16 min 57 secs
• Christianisation of ‘pagan’ sites – 20 min 52 secs
• Did he really mind sheep on a Mayo mountain? – 24 min 26 secs
• How did he escape Ireland, and where did he leave from? – 30 min 24 secs
• Why and when did St Patrick return to Ireland? – 37 min 05 secs
• What do we know about the early Christian communities in Ireland? – 41 mins 42 secs
• Would there have been anything archaeologically recognisable about these early communities, did they have churches at this time? – 44 min 12 secs
• Do we know who these early Christians were, what strata of society etc? – 47 min 38 secs
• Patrick’s potential ‘strategy’ – 50 mins 07 secs
• Who was Palladius, and what was his impact on Ireland? – 50 min 25 secs
• How did it end for St Patrick? – 53 mins
• The transformation of the historical Patrick into ‘St Patrick’ – 54 min 44 secs
• How much did it help that Patrick was an ‘outsider’ – 58 min 11 secs
• What do you think the real Patrick would have made of the image we have of him today? (includes chat on St Patrick and the apocalypse). – 1 hour 59 secs
• The real story of St Patrick being more dramatic than the legend – 1 hour 04 mins 2 secs
• Where you can find further information on St Patrick – 1 hour 07 mins 20 secs

Show notes and links to further information

• You can find Terry’s brilliant blog here: voxhib.com
• The Royal Irish Academy have a wonderful resource on Patrick and his writings at confessio.ie.
• Terry wrote a fantastic audiobook that digs deeper into the story of St Patrick that is brought to life by Gerry O’Brien. You can purchase a copy for just €4 here.
• As I mentioned at the end of the episode, we have something very, very, very exciting in the works that should be launched before May. Do sign up to our mailing list (at the bottom of this page) to make sure you’re one of the first to see it. We’re going to be making our mailing list a weekly thing, with info on great places to visit, news, new audioguides and insights along with special offers and a lot more too. So please do sign up for free below!