The Life of St. Patrick and His Place in History

by John Bagnell Bury

This classic biography first appeared in 1905 and still offers a valuable resource to scholars, theologians, and others interested in Irish history. The well-documented study depicts St. Patrick’s early life in 4th-century Britain during the Roman occupation, his abduction by Irish raiders, his conversion to Christianity, and his lifelong efforts to convert pagans and found churches.

Genres: Biography, History, Ireland

404 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1905

About the author

John Bagnell Bury (often published as J.B. Bury) was a classical scholar, historian, and philologist. He held the chair in Modern History at Trinity College, Dublin, for nine years, and also was appointed Regius Professor of Greek at Trinity, and Regius Professor of Modern History at Cambridge University.

Reviews

[Kenneth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a landmark in scholars' study of St. Patrick. First published in 1905, Professor Bury had done a thorough sifting (as far as was possible at that time) of the historical sources for researching Patrick. Although in the years since, much more work has been done (Liam de Paor writes about such developments in his Introduction to this Dover edition that I read), this book remains a major source for anyone who wants to understand Patrick's place in history and his role in converting Ireland to Christianity. It's a profitable read and I highly recommend it.

[J.C. Shepard · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first dedicated biography of Saint Patrick, by a dedicated historian of the Roman empire.
If you read it, consider the context of a Protestant Irish author before the Irish Free State.

[Michael Peter Ansell · Rating 4 out of 5]

ST PATRICK MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE!

We know of Ireland's patron saint via a very simplistic story as to how he converted the whole nation to Christianity. This book tells in a good way, that things were not that simple. A very interesting book.