The Wolves of St. Patrick

Today (March 17th) is St. Patrick’s Day. St. Patrick (died c. 460 C.E.) is the patron saint of Ireland and one of Christianity’s best known and most revered figures. The holiday of St. Patrick’s Day marks the day on which tradition says Patrick died and has been celebrated by Irish Catholics since the 7th-Century. Because the holiday falls during the time of Lent – when Christians are suppose to abandon their vices in imitation of Christ – St. Patrick’s Day with its drinking, feasting, partying and more drinking was seen as a welcomed reprieve.

Today St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated not only in Ireland but throughout the United States as well – the first St. Patrick’s Day parade was actually held in New York City in 1762 – and while many people, not all Irish themselves, associate a wide variety of things with the holiday – such as the color green, shamrocks, leprechauns, and, of course, alcohol – one thing which most people probably don’t think of when it comes to St. Patrick’s Day is werewolves. And yet St. Patrick has very much to do with werewolves indeed.

According to an autobiographical letter called the Declaration (Latin: Confessio) written by the saint himself sometime before the 5th-Century, Patrick was born in Britain to wealthy parents. His father, Calpornius, was a deacon, and his grandfather, Potitus, a priest in the Catholic Church. At the age of sixteen Patrick was abducted by Irish marauders who sold him into slavery in Ireland where he was forced to work as a herdsman for six years. During his time as a slave Patrick’s faith did not weaver but grew stronger. One day Patrick received a vision from God in which he was instructed to escape from his master and head for a port two hundred miles away where a ship was waiting to take him back home. Patrick, making good on his vision, escaped and headed towards the northern coast where he did indeed find a ship that ferried him back to Britain.

After being returned home Patrick followed in his father and grandfather’s footsteps and became a bishop. Nearly fifteen-years had passed since Patrick escaped from Ireland when he had a second vision. This time Patrick was visited by an angel carrying a letter from Ireland that cried out; “We appeal to you, holy servant boy, to come and walk among us.” After this vision, Patrick knew that he was to return to Ireland and spread the Christian faith.

But St. Patrick’s connection with werewolves doesn’t come from history but rather legend. While it is generally accepted that Patrick converted, baptized and ordained “thousands of people” from Celtic paganism to Catholicism with little more than a helpful demonstration on how the Holy Trinity is like a three-leaf clover, this is not to say that he didn’t encounter some opposition from many of the indigenous pagans. One of these individuals was the Welsh King Vereticus who, no matter what St. Patrick preached, refused to humble himself and accept Christ. Finally, St. Patrick grew so annoyed with the king’s boastfulness that he chose to humble him himself by placing a curse upon him which caused him to assume the form of a wolf every seven years – thus giving us what maybe Ireland’s oldest werewolf story.

Other tales that connect St. Patrick with werewolves tell of how the saint’s message of Christianity was met with scorn and mockery. One account describes how St. Patrick was walking along a road one night enjoying the light of the full moon. As he went along he encountered three men who began heckling the saint, mocking his missionary efforts and profaning the name of Christ. With each insult the men’s howling laughter grew loader and St. Patrick’s patience shorter. Finally, irritated by these heathen’s taunting and disrespect St. Patrick spun around and cursed them by the light of the full moon; “If you want to howl and laugh like wolves,” he told them, “then from now on you shall howl every time the moon is full!” After that the three men quickly found that every time the moon was full their bodies were transformed into those of savage wolves. This particular folktale has been cited by some scholars as the first myth ever to draw a connection between the full moon and lycanthrope, something modern day werewolf books and movies have made us accustom to.

One final legend comes from an ancient text called the Giraldus Cambrensis or Geral of Wales; a tome which recounts the confessions made by Irish priests. One confession contained within gives an account by a priest who claims that while on the way to Meath he was approached by a wolf that spoke with a human tongue. The wolf assured the priest that he would come to no harm and that he simply wished for the priest to follow him into the woods where his wife, also a wolf, lay dying in need of the sacrament of last rites. The priest agreed and on the way the wolf explained that he and his wife had once been human and lived in the town of Ossory. One day a traveling bishop had come to their town preaching the gospel. The people of the town, however, only mocked the bishop and his faith. Angry and insulted by the people’s insolence the traveling bishop cursed the entire town, condemning them to assume the form of a wolf every seven years. Eventually the priest reached the wolf’s dying wife and performed the sacraments of last rites thus saving her soul from eternal damnation. In some versions of this tale the traveling bishop who curses the people of Ossory is St. Patrick, in others it is a St. Natalis.

Naturally, these tales about St. Patrick are not ones that are widely known, most likely because they cast the saint in a rather bad light. In fact, some scholars believe that such tales may in reality have actually been invented by the pagan Irish as part of an ancient smear campaign attempting to tarnish not only St. Patrick’s image but also Christianity in general. Of course, it’s also just as likely that they could have originated amongst the early Christians of Ireland who were inspired by other tales of prophets and saints who occasionally loose their tempters with their potential converts and lash out with deadly curses. Some such stories can even be found in the Bible itself.

So in conclusion I just want to say Happy St. Patrick’s Day. Go eat, drink (safely), and be merry. And if you happen to be out late and the moon in full perhaps you can stop and have a pint with these guys….

Pictures:

At Top: Statue of St. Patrick at Hill of Tara, Ireland.

At Bottom: A 19th-Century print shows werewolves gathering at Normandy, France.

Sources: The History of St. Patrick's Day at History.com, Fertility Goddesses, Groundhog Bellies & Coca-Cola: Modern Holidays (2006) by Gabriella Kalapos, and The Book Of Were-Wolves (1865) by Sabine Baring-Gould.

Dogs in Myth and Legend: The Faithful Hound

This post was written for Deborah Parkhill Mullis at Metrolina Dog Reporter.

Dogs have been the faithful companions of mankind for well over 12,000-years and in that time have amassed their own unique body of legend and lore. Myths about dogs often revolve around one or more of the animal’s well known traits such as their skills as guardians or hunters. However above all it is a dog’s unwavering loyalty which has earned them a place in the annals of myth and folklore.

The “Faithful Hound” motif, one of the major folkloric archetypes, can be found around the world beginning in ancient Greece with Homer’s epic the Odyssey in which it is Odysseus’ faithful dog Argos who is the only one who recognizes the hero upon his return home; Odysseus had aged twenty-years and was disguised as a beggar when he reappeared.

One of the best known folktales to involve a “Faithful Hound” is the 18th-Century Welsh legend of the deerhound Gelert whose master, Prince Llewellyn, left his hound in charge of his infant son while he went out hunting. When the prince returned he found the room destroyed and his son’s cradle overturned, the baby nowhere in sight. It was then that Gelert appeared, his muzzle coated in blood. Horrified the prince assumed the worst, that his once beloved dog had slain his only heir. Drawing his sword the prince slew Gelert. It was only after the fact that the prince began to hear the baby’s muffled cries and proceeded to search the room where he discovered not only his son – alive and well beneath the overturned cradle – but the body of a dead wolf. It was then that the prince realized his horrible mistake.

Today Gelert’s grave, which is located in the village of Beddgelert, serves as a major tourist attraction. According to local folklore even the village’s name, Beddgelert, is believed to mean “Gelert’s Grave,” though this theory is largely dismissed by historians.

Gelert’s story may be based on that of another famous dog; the 13th-Century French greyhound Guinefort. Guinefort’s tale is almost identical to that of Gelert’s; Guinefort’s master, a knight from a castle near the city of Lyon, leaves the hound in charge of his infant child while he goes out. When he returns the room is in shambles and the child is missing, but there’s Guinefort mouth wet with blood. The knight slays the dog only to discover moments after that his child is alive, having been saved by the faithful dog from a deadly viper whose dead body lay nearby.

What makes Guinefort’s story unique from Gelert’s however, is what happens next. Distraught over the slaying of his faithful hound the knight buries the dog and erects a small shrine over the grave. As word spread concerning the events which lead to Guinefort’s death, local villagers began to regard the greyhound as something of a martyr. A local cult quickly began to form around the dog, now called Saint Guinefort, and mothers with ill or sickly children would bring them to Guinefort’s grave in hope of a miracle. The Catholic Church was none to happy about this however and quickly labeled the cult of St. Guinefort as a heresy inspired by the devil. The Inquisition was sent to deal with the cult but despite their best efforts was unable to stamp out the veneration of the dog which (according to some reports) lasted well into the 1940s!

Other examples of the “Faithful Hound” motif can be found in several contemporary near-legendary tales. One of these is the story of Greyfriars Bobby, a Skye terrier whose owner, John Grey, died in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1858 when Bobby was two-years-old. Grey was buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard and Bobby attended the funeral. After the funeral Bobby refused to leave his master’s grave except for meals which he received at a local restaurant.

Tales of Bobby’s fidelity quickly spread across Scotland and then overseas transforming the steadfast pooch into a living legend. In order to make sure that Bobby was protected the children of Edinburgh donated their pocket money towards buying him a collar and the Lord Provost of Edinburgh, Sir William Chambers, paid for the renewal of Bobby’s license making him the responsibility of the city council. Bobby was eventually awarded the Freedom of the City of Edinburgh; he is the only dog to ever receive this prestigious honor.

After fourteen years of faithfully waiting by his master’s graveside Bobby died on January 14th 1872. He was buried just inside the gate of Greyfriars Kirkyard, as close to his master’s grave as could be allowed. In 1981 The Dog Aid Society of Scotland erected a red granite tombstone over Bobby’s grave. In addition to this a statue of Greyfriars Bobby can be seen atop a fountain in Edinburgh’s Candlemaker Row in front of the Greyfriars Bobby pub.

A similar story to that of Greyfriars Bobby is that of Hachikō, an Akita from the city of Odate, Akita Prefecture, Japan. Hachikō’s owner was Dr. Ueno of Tokyo’s Imperial University. Everyday Dr. Ueno would board the train at Tokyo’s Shibuya Railway Station to go to work. When he returned in the evening Hachikō would be waiting. Then one evening in 1925 Dr. Ueno didn’t return home, he had died of a heart attack while at work earlier that day. Nevertheless Hachikō continued to show up every evening at the Shibuya Railway Station for the next ten years even after it became difficult for him to walk due to arthritis. When Hachikō died on March 8th 1935 at the age of twelve a National Day of Mourning was declared.

The year before, a bronze statue of Hachikō had been erected at Shibuya Railway Station. Unfortunately the statue was demolished during World War II so that the metal could be used for the war effort. After the war The Society for Recreating the Hachikō Statue had a second statue erected in August of 1948, it still stands at the Shibuya Railway Station today.

Sources: DK Eyewitness Books: Dogs (2004) by Juliet Clutton-Brock, The Hidden Powers of Animals: Uncovering the Secrets of Nature (2001) by Dr. Karl P.N. Shuker, and Curious Myths of the Middle Ages (2005) by Sabine Baring-Gould.