Saint Patrick’s autobiographical work is called the Confessio, also known in English as the Declaration or Confession. Written in Latin, it is one of the two surviving works generally accepted as Patrick’s own.
The Confessio gives the most direct surviving account of Patrick’s life. He describes being captured from Britain at about age sixteen, taken to Ireland, and held in slavery for six years while working as a herder. He later escaped, returned to Ireland as a missionary, and wrote about his faith, ministry, baptisms, and opposition from critics.
It is not a complete modern autobiography: Patrick is selective, sometimes vague about dates and places, and focuses on defending his calling and explaining God’s role in his life. His other generally accepted work is the Letter to the soldiers of Coroticus, also called the Epistola. Vita Patricii is a later biographical title, not Patrick’s own autobiographical work.