His parents were Roman aristocrats and his real name was Maewyn Succat.
After being forcefully brought to Ireland by marauders and living for several years as a slave, he escaped by walking over 200 miles to the coast, where a ship took him back to his home in Britain.
When he returned to Ireland in 433, a chieftain immediately tried to kill him. Allegedly, he could not raise his arm to strike the holy missionary.
Patrick has never been canonized by the Roman Catholic Church, and is therefore not officially a saint.
St. Patrick's Day is celebrated on the day of his death, March 17th.
He never drove any snakes out of Ireland, because snakes have never lived in Ireland.
The Christian church that Patrick helped found in Ireland did not recognize the religious authority of Rome until centuries after his death.
He did not believe he could write well. This may have been due to his being taken captive as a youth and missing a large part of his education.
