St David’s Day

The Origins, Traditions And Significance of St. David's Day

To find out all about St David’s Day origins, traditions and the significance to those who celebrate, our Brecon Beacons hotel has put together a blog on all you need to know.

The Origins Of St. David's Day

Since 589 AD, St David’s Day has been noted as an important day to commemorate Wales’ saint, though the day or ‘feast’ has only been celebrated since his official canonisation in the 12th Century. There has been many a tale told about St David and his legacy; what he has or hasn’t done to earn the esteemed title of Patron Saint of Wales is certainly an interesting discussion. Though there is one story we can all agree on at Peterstone Court…

A Tale As Old As Time Itself

Legend has it David was the reason behind the infamous Welsh flower – the leek. During a battle between the Welsh and Saxons, where the Welsh were coming closer and closer to defeat, David proposed an idea. To stop accidental friendly fire he suggested the Welsh side wore a leek flower upon their helmets so they could easily identify the two sides of the battle. It is rumoured this led to the Welsh victory.

A Cause For Celebration

Typically, people celebrate by wearing daffodils and leeks, wearing traditional dress and by eating traditional foods such as cawl and Welsh rarebit. Special concerts and parades are held in his honour and young children may be excused from traditional curriculum too. On top of all of this you can hear the Welsh sounds at St David’s Hall with BBC musicians hosting a real Welsh listening experience.

The legend of our Patron Saint lives on. If you so choose to celebrate the 1st of March in our corner of the country, then you’ll struggle to find any hotels in Brecon that are a more perfect base than Peterstone.

Celebrate all the buzz of St David’s Day this year and call on our Brecon Beacons hotel to serve as your relaxing home-from-home after it all. Contact us here to enquire about our availability.