Let’s get the party started
March 17th used to be just a holy day in Ireland, but how did it become synonymous with a celebration of all things Irish, and where did the first St. Patrick’s day parade take place?
What’s happening around the world?
It ain’t just Ireland that remembers St. Patrick on March 17th, oh no! Take North America for example, home to some of the most being home to some of the most spectacular productions like the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New York marching up 5th Avenue to the beat of countless marching bands; while Hot Springs, Arkansas parades its procession down Bridge Street and, despite it being reputedly the shortest street in the world, there’s plenty to keep you occupied along the way. In London, marching bands from the UK, Ireland and the US strut their stuff through the center of their cities in scenes mirrored in far-flung spots from Singapore to Bangladesh and from Beijing to Auckland. Perfect proof that a little Irish tends to go a long, long way!
And here's something you mightn't know…
Ireland wasn’t the first country to celebrate St Patrick’s Day with a parade and, up until 1970, pubs across Ireland closed their doors as a mark of respect for this religious occasion! It was, in fact, colonial New York City that hosted the first official St Patrick’s Day parade back in 1762, when Irish immigrants in the British colonial army marched down the city streets to St Patrick’s Cathedral. Dublin’s first St Patrick’s Day Parade is little more than 75 years old, but the occasion has changed dramatically since then!
