St. David's Day
Feb. 28th, 2011 11:35 amWas it last year that we talked about St. Patrick's Day and why the other three patron saints of Britain's days weren't celebrated so widely?
Anyway, 1st March is St. David's Day. He's the patron saint of Wales. His name in Welsh is Dewi Sant. The 1st March was the day he died in 589.
His symbol is the leek and he is usually shown with a dove.
"After being educated in Cardiganshire, he went on pilgrimage through south Wales and the west of England, where it is said that he founded religious centres such as Glastonbury and Croyland. He even went on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, where he was made archbishop. He eventually settled at Glyn Rhosyn (St David's), in south-west Wales, where he established a very strict ascetic religious community. Many miracles have been attributed to him ...
From the 12th century onwards, Dewi's fame spread throughout South Wales and as far as Ireland and Brittany. St David's Cathedral became a popular centre of pilgrimage, particularly after Dewi was officially recognised as a Catholic saint in 1120." (Source: http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/275/)