Most people are surprised to hear that we didn’t always celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day with the color green. With all the parades, celebrations, and decorations it’s hard to think of any other color than green for this popular holiday.
Up until the Irish Rebellion in 1798, the color associated with the holiday was blue, not green. Blue could be found on the old Irish flag and highlighted in their royal court. However, the British wore red, and the Irish chose green as the opposing color when during the rebellion.
When the country finally claimed independence, those in power chose green, orange, and white in its flag. In addition to reflecting their winning color, it also is reflective of their heritage as the Emerald Isle.
As for Saint Patrick’s Day, Saint Patrick is known for using the green clover to teach about the Holy Trinity. The conversion of Ireland from a largely Pagan population to Catholicism is attributed to him. This is why the Catholic church officially assigned him the clover as his botanical symbol in which all saints are assigned.
Even today, not everybody celebrates Saint Patrick’s Day with the color green. In fact, you may be surprised to see some people proudly wearing the opposing color orange on this day.
At the time the country won independence, the country was split between Catholics and Protestants. Catholics chose to be represented by the green and Protestants by the orange. The white line down the middle is said to represent peace and unity in the country. Interestingly, no one typically wears white on this holiday. It makes sense that the majority of people would celebrate with green since it is a Catholic holiday for a Catholic Saint. However, some Protestants still celebrate by wearing orange to support Christianity coming to Ireland
This Saint Patrick’s Day, find some green and wear it proudly because on March 17th everyone is a bit Irish.