St. Patrick Didn't Banish Snakes

One of the reasons St. Patrick is celebrated is because he supposedly chased all of the snakes of Ireland into the sea. Actually, there were no snakes there to begin with. According to herpetologists — people who study snakes — Ireland's northern location and frigid coast line prevented snakes from migrating to its shores between ice ages. Today, many scholars believe that snakes served as an allegory for Druidic priests whom Saint Patrick did banish from the Emerald Isle.