St Patrick's Isle ( gv, Ynnys Pherick) is a small

tidal island A tidal island is a piece of land that is connected to the mainland by a natural or man-made causeway that is exposed at low tide and submerged at high tide. Because of the mystique surrounding tidal islands, many of them have been sites of ...

on the west coast of the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = " O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europ ...

in the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the C ...

, largely occupied by Peel Castle and noted for its attractive and relatively well preserved historic castle

ruins Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

History

Archeological studies have shown permanent occupation on St Patrick's Isle dating to the Late Bronze Age. The ruins on St Patrick's Isle include St Patrick's Church and an Irish-style round tower, the former St German's Cathedral, and the more recent residence of the Lords of Mann. The ancient

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

was left to decay in the 18th century, never to be rebuilt. The island's steep and rocky edges made it an ideal defensive outpost. It is said to be the place where

St Patrick Saint Patrick ( la, Patricius; ga, Pádraig ; cy, Padrig) was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, the other patron sain ...

first set foot in the Isle of Man in 444 while returning from Liverpool to Ireland. Having established Christianity, he then appointed Germanus bishop, to oversee further development of the Church. However, there is debate as to whether the name "St Patrick's Isle" pre-dates the thirteenth century. The

islet An islet is a very small, often unnamed island. Most definitions are not precise, but some suggest that an islet has little or no vegetation and cannot support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be permanen ...

is now a tourist site with the castle walls running close to the shoreline. There is a public walk around the outside of the castle, which lines the coastal edge of the islet. It is connected to the town of Peel on the Isle of Man by a

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tr ...

over Fenella Beach, named after the character in Sir

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy ...

's '' Peveril of the Peak''. In addition to the historic ruins, the island is partially a sealife sanctuary. St. Patrick's Isle was originally referred to as (or ) in Manx.

References

External links

Manx Place Names 1925 – Parish of Kirk Patrick

Isle-of-Man.com Peel Castle & St Patrick's Isle with aerial photo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Patrick's Isle Islands of the Isle of Man