A couple of centuries before that, the Roman Empire was disintegrating and Romano-Britons were regularly kidnapped by Gaelic Irish slavers. After a number of ye

A couple of centuries before that, the Roman Empire was disintegrating and Romano-Britons were regularly kidnapped by Gaelic Irish slavers. After a number of years, one of these slaves escaped but later returned to Ireland as a missionary and was successful in kick-starting the Christianisation of the Irish. In Christian Ireland, slaves gained more rights which eventually, as I understand it, lead to a decrease in slavery. Patrick is now our patron saint.