St. Patrick, the smooth operator

He may have converted Ireland to Christianity and immortalised the shamrock, but Saint Patrick was also an astute operator, according to a new book.

The country's patron saint accepted land and jewels against the church's wishes to fuel his 5th century evangelising mission and paid tributes to pagan chiefs to woo them to Christianity.

One of the world's best-known saints, Patrick, whose feast day is celebrated among Irish communities across the world on March 17, is normally portrayed as a humble servant who died in poverty after establishing Christianity in Ireland, but he was quite willing to accept largesse along the way and the church authorities were not pleased, historian Rob Vance told Reuters.

"Letters were sent to him rebuking him for accepting gifts in that it was bringing the church into disrepute," Vance said.

Describing his new book, "Secret Sights II: Unknown Medieval Ireland," Vance depicted a religious market-place where tribal leaders gave St Patrick land, women gave him jewellery and the saint himself had to offer gifts to smooth his way.

"This was quite popular at the time," he said. "People would gladly donate things to the church but it was difficult to keep track of this stuff and who received what."

Legend has Patrick introducing Christianity to the pagan island and banishing snakes. Historians dismiss both.

They say there have never been any snakes in Ireland and that there is evidence other Christians had attempted to convert the island before.

However, Patrick was an astute converter who attracted heathens by incorporating pagan imagery into Christianity, celebrating Easter with bonfires and placing a sun at the centre of the cross to produce a Celtic cross, but as an individual he was a man of integrity: he was that rare somebody who genuinely had a Christian vocation.