Happy St. David's Day!

Flag of Saint David

     Today is St. David's Day, and it is a national day of celebration in Wales.

     Saint David is the patron saint of Wales - one of the four patron saints of the British – or Anglo-Celtic – Isles (with the other ones being St. Andrew for Scotland, St. Patrick for Ireland, and St. George for England).

Stained-glass window featuring St. David at the Jesus College Chapel at Oxford

     He was born in Wales, and began his ecclesiastical career as a teacher and preacher, and he became widely known throughout the Celtic world. David would go on to found monastic settlements in Brittany, Cornwall, and his native country. There, he established a Celtic monastic community at Glyn Rhosyn in Pembrokeshire, where St. David's Cathedral stands today. Among his well-known miracles was that of causing the ground to rise into a small hill at the spot where he had preached before a large crowd in the town of Llanddewi Brefi, and he eventually became a bishop. St. David lived by example, and had a simple lifestyle which included refraining from meat and alcohol, engaging in prayer, and disavowing personal possessions. 

     At the time of his death on March 1, 589, he was said to be 90-100 years of age, and was buried at the cathedral that bore his name, where a shrine was erected. The shrine was vandalized by Viking invaders, but was rebuilt in 1275, though its decorative elements were stripped during the Protestant reformation.

St. David's Day celebrations at Cardiff Bay

     Commemorations for St. David's Day go back several centuries, but it was not until 2000 that the devolved National Assembly for Wales unanimously voted to make it a public holiday, though it is not a bank holiday where most people officially have the day off. 

     Parades are held throughout Wales in commemoration of St. David's Day, and the largest of these take place in the Welsh capital city of Cardiff, which is usually attended by the monarch of the United Kingdom or the Prince of Wales.

Charles, Prince of Wales on a visit to Wales

     On Friday of this year, Prince Charles visited the Queen's Dragoon Guard's (of which he is Colonel-in-Chief) and watched them conduct training exercises prior to deployment to Afghanistan. He also visited Old Town Hall in Merthyr Tydfil, which is being opened today as an arts and crafts center after an extensive renovation. The visits were made on Friday since St. David's Day falls on a Saturday this year, and the Prince is now spending a private weekend in Wales. 

     In addition, people take part in eisteddfodau - a Welsh festival of literature, music and performance - and some of the Welsh regiments in the British Army conduct a military tattoo. 

     Celebrations of the day often include the use of Welsh emblems, such as the leek and daffodil, as well as the flag bearing the cross of St. David - a gold cross against a black field. In 2012, the shrine of St. David was restored again, and rededicated on the patron saint's day that year.


Photo Credit: Self via Wikimedia Commons cc, Lilo Lil via Wikimedia Commons cc, Peter Broster via Flickr cc