Sir, – Martin Murphy is incorrect to say that St Koloman is the patron saint of Austria ( February 12th). Austria as such does not have a patron saint – a result of its historical development. Instead, each of the nine federal states has its own patron saint – some share a saint. Koloman (Coloman, Colman) was the patron saint of the states of Upper and Lower Austria until 1663, when St Leopold was given the responsibility.
According to legend, Koloman, when travelling from Ireland to the Holy Land, had the misfortune to be passing through Austria when it was in conflict with Bohemia. He was suspected of being a spy and killed in 1012. – Yours, etc,
BRENDAN CALLAGHAN,
Castle Avenue,
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Clontarf, Dublin 3.