“God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise” (I Corinthians 1:27).

Few men have been shrouded in legend more than the apostle of Ireland, Saint Patrick.

And like all good Irish heroes of the past, Patrick has been dressed in so many mythical suits that it is difficult to separate the true from the truly ridiculous.

I was unaware of the sport in which the Irish take with historic accounts until, on a recent trip to Dublin, I met an Irish tour guide who told me that “no fact is so impressive that the Irish cannot improve upon it,” his point of course was that the Irish are story tellers at heart (once this is understood one need not become overly frustrated with the seemingly endless versions of historical Irish tales).

On that account, this article will attempt to weed through the many tales of…