THE LEEK

NOW MARCH 1 IS CELEBRATED BY SCHOOLS AND CULTURAL SOCIETIES

THROUGHOUT WALES. IT IS THE CUSTOM ON THAT DAY TO WEAR

EITHER A LEEK OR A DAFFODIL - TWO OF THEIR NATIONAL EMBLEMS –

AND FOR YOUNG GIRLS TO WEAR THE NATIONAL COSTUME.

Legend has it that St David ordered his soldiers to wear leeks on their

helmets during a battle against the Saxons during the sixth century,

while the Battle of Crecy, in 1346, featured loyal and brave Welsh archers

who fought in a field of leeks.

By 1536, when Henry VIII gave a leek to

his daughter on 1 March, they were already associated with St David's Day.

It is possible that the green and white family colours adopted by the

Tudors were taken from their liking for the leek.