St. Patrick 's Day is the feast day St. Patrick , patron saint of Ireland . Study : Now a new study from Cambridge University based on his writings suggests Saint Patrick was not brought to Ireland as a slave , as the legend has it , but that in fact he may actually have sold slaves his family owned to pay his way to Ireland -- in order to avoid a job as a tax collector for the Roman empire . Patrick may have sold slaves in order to pay his way to Ireland to do tax collector job in Britain . Traditional history : Patrick was abducted in Britain and taken to Ireland as a slave . Legend : Patrick used cross , national emblem of Ireland , to explain concept of Holy Trinity .
St. Patrick 's Day is the feast day St. Patrick , patron saint of Ireland . Study : Patrick may have sold slaves in order to pay his way to Ireland to do tax collector job in Britain . Traditional history : Patrick was abducted in Britain and taken to Ireland as a slave . Legend : Patrick used cross , national emblem of Ireland , to explain concept of Holy Trinity .