The wearing of the green : a history of St. Patrick's Day

For a few hours each year, millions of Irish and non-Irish commemorate the life of a 1500-year-old saint in a boisterous display of parading and revelry, festooned in the shamrock and emerald green. The Wearing of the Green captures the dramatic story of how March 17 was transformed from a stuffy dinner for Ireland's religious elite to the world's most public ethnic festival. Long celebrated with more fanfare in New York than in Dublin, the holiday has been criticized for its loss of religious meaning, commercialism, and embarrassing rituals of drunkenness. But it has also served to unite Irish emigrants from America to Australia to Argentina. More recently it has become a flash point for political divides within the Irish community. The Wearing of the Green is the first book to chronicle the full history of St. Patrick's Day-from its medieval origins to plastic leprechauns and green beer-exploring the shared heritage of the Irish through the evolution of this amazing holiday.

The full history of St. Patrick's day is captured here for the first time in The Wearing of the Green.

Illustrated with photos, the book spans the medieval origins, steeped in folklore and myth, through its turbulent and troubled times when it acted as fuel for fierce political argument, and tells the fascinating story of how the celebration of 17th March was transformed from a stuffy dinner for Ireland's elite to one of the world's most public festivals.

Looking at more general Irish traditions and Irish communities throughout the world, Mike Cronin and Daryl Adair follow the history of this widely celebrated event, examining how the day has been exploited both politically and commercially, and they explore the shared heritage of the Irish through the development of this unique patriotic holiday.

Highly informative for students of history, cultural studies and sociology, and an absolute delight for anyone interested in the fascinating and unique culture of Ireland.

The full history of St. Patrick's day is captured here for the first time in The Wearing of the Green. Illustrated with photos, the book spans the medieval origins, steeped in folklore and myth, through its turbulent and troubled times when it acted as fuel for fierce political argument, and tells the fascinating story of how the celebration of 17th March was transformed from a stuffy dinner for Ireland's elite to one of the world's most public festivals. Looking at more general Irish traditions and Irish communities throughout the world, Mike Cronin and Daryl Adair follow the history of this widely celebrated event, examining how the day has been exploited both politically and commercially, and they explore the shared heritage of the Irish through the development of this unique patriotic holiday. Highly informative for students of history, cultural studies and sociology, and an absolute delight for anyone interested in the fascinating and unique culture of Ireland. Here were thousands of persons congregated together peaceably and orderly, a considerable number of whom had on many former festivals of Saint Patrick deemed it an honour to celebrate it by the commission of the most odious and detestable properties - drunkenness, riot and disorder prevailed to an extent which was frightful to contemplate; but happily those exhibitions have passed away, never again we trust to be repeated. This lively and ambitious book - the first to chronicle the full history of St. Patrick's Day, from its medieval origins to the modern day - explores the shared heritage of the Irish through the development of this unique national holiday. The evolution of St Patrick's Day; Famine and exodus; Nationalism and diaspora; Republicanism and militarism; Proclaiming Ireland: independence and empire; Modern times, troubled times; Reinventing St Patrick's Day__ Published in paperback for the first time, the first book to chronicle the full history of St Patrick's Day explores the shared heritage of the Irish through the development of this unique national holiday This lively and ambitious book explores the whole range of St Patrick's Day celebrations, from parades to plastic leprechauns, within a historical and contemporary context Mike Cronin And Daryl Adair. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 300-316) And Index.