kingship in celtic...
TRANSCRIPT
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Kingship in Celtic society
• IE roots, *pead = rules *reg = stretches • IE *regs = king; Latin rex, Gaulish rix, Irish,
ri, Welsh rhi. • IE *teuta = tribe; Irish tuath, Welsh tud • Words formed from these roots
– Gaulish god’s name Teutates – Gaulish personal name Toutierix = tribal king – Irish ri tuaithe=tribal king – Welsh personal name Tudor
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Sovereignty
• Goddess of the land seeks out the king – Archaeological evidence
• Rosmerta and Esus • Rosmerta and Mercury • Epona and Mars
– Literary evidence • Irish--Lugh and Flaithe (Baile in Scáile/Phantom’s
Frenzy) • Welsh--Rhiannon and Pwyll (First Branch of the
Mabinogi)
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Feasting and drinking • Irish feis = “feast,” from fo-aid = “sleeps with” • Feast of Tara, discontinued in Christian era • Gerald of Wales, c. 1185 AD • Asvamedha (PIE ekwo-meydho), “horse-drunk” • Gaulish personal name Epomeduos, “horse mead” • Irish Medb, “drunkenness” • Branwen and Matholwch (Second branch of Mabinogi) • Rhiannon and Pwyll (First branch of the Mabinogi) • Last kingship ritual in Ireland recorded in 1310, with
accession of Felim O Conchobair as King of Connacht
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Hill of Tara, Ireland
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Kingship ritual illustrated in Gerald of Wales’ History and Topography of Ireland
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Medb, painting by Joseph Christian Leyendecker, 1916.
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Sovereignty ritual gone awry
• Lebor Gebála (The Book of Invasions) – Sons of Mil rape and kill the sovereignty
goddesses Eriu, Fodla, Banba • The Destruction of Da Derga’s Hostel
– Sovereignty goddess appears as a hag and the king rejects her
• Medb in the Tain – Offers her “friendly thighs” to any warrior who
will help her in her war with Ulster
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Sacral kingship • Important rituals/behaviors
– Bravery – Hospitality – Generosity – Hunting – Truthfulness – Justice
• Crith Gablach, “On Status”, 7th century—gives a weekly schedule for kings – Sunday for drinking ale – Monday for legal business – Tuesday for fidchell/chess – Wednesday for watching greyhounds hunt – Thursday for marital relations – Friday for horse racing – Saturday for judging legal cases
• Audacht Morainn, “The Testament of Morainn,” 7th century • Fir Flathemainn, “Prince’s Truth,” 7th century
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Signs of sacral kingship
• Unusual birth – Pryderi ap Pwyll (First branch of Mabinogi)
• Irish geis (s), gessa (pl) = taboos – Fergus Mac Róich could not refuse a feast – Cuchulain could not eat dog meat, but could not
refuse food given him • Unusual death
– Lleu Llaw Gyffes (Fourth branch of Mabinogi) – Diarmait Mac Cerbaill (The Death of Diarmait Mac
Cerbaill
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Queens
• Cartimandua, queen of the Brigantes, 1st century AD – Queen and sovereignty figure?
• Boudicca, queen of the Iceni, d. 61 AD – Prasutagos, husband to Boudicca, died c. 60
AD
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Boudica statue, by Thomas Thornycroft, 1905, near Houses of Parliament, London.
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British/English kingdoms Map from Peter Hunter Blair, Roman Britain and Early England, 55 BC-
AD 871.
• The Invaders – Angles, Saxons, Irish, Picts
• British kingdoms – Dumnonia – Dyfed – Ceredigion – Gwent – Powys – Gwynedd – Gododdin – Strathclyde – Rheged – Elmet
• Wealh>>Wales, Welsh (foreigner/slave)
• Cymru, Cymro
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British/Welsh kingship and culture • Rhi/Ri = in personal names (Rigotamos/Riothamus,
Rhiwallon) • Brenhin = king
– Tywysog = prince, Arglwydd = lord • Teulu = war band • Maelgwn Gwynedd, fl. 6th century • Owain ab Urien, king of Rheged, fl. 7th century • Rhodri Mawr, king of Gwynedd, d. 878 • Hywel Dda, d. 950
– Ruled Gwynedd, Dyfed, and Powys – Cyfreith Hywel Dda (earliest text 12th c.)
• Gruffudd ap Llywelyn, d. 1063 – Ruled Gwynedd, Powys, Dyfed, and Gwent
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Early Medieval Ireland Map from Nora Chadwick, The Celts.
• The fifths – Connaught, Cruachan Ai – Ulster, Emain Macha – Leinster, Dun Ailinne – Munster, Cashel – Meath, Tara
• Levels of kingship – Ard rí (high king) – Rí cóicid (provincial king) – Ruiri (over-king, king of
many tribes) – Rí túaithe (king of one
tribe)
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The High Kingship
• Niall Noigiallach (Neill of the Nine Hostages) – Ui Néill (grandsons of Niall), modern O’Neill
• Loégaire mac Néill, 5th to 6th century CE • Brian Boruma
– Ui Brian (grandsons of Brian) – King of Munster, 965-1002 – High King, 1002-1014 – Battle of Clontarf, 1014
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Christianization of Irish kingship • Firflaith (just king) • Lebor Gebála (Book of Invasions, 7th-8th century)
– Sru (Irish for noble, wealthy; a Scythian said to be descended from Noah)
– Scotta (said to be a daughter of Pharaoh and mother of Sru) – Nel (Cloud, reminiscent of pillar of clouds that led Israelites
through the desert) – Goedel (Gael, Irish, was present at the Tower of Babel)
• The Phantom Chariot of Cuchulainn – “Great as was my heroism/Hard as was my sword,/The Devil
crushed me with one finger/Into the red charcoal!”
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The early Scottish kings • Dal Riada (NE Ulster and NW
Britain) – Battle of Mag Roth, 637
• Cairpre Riata in Argyll • Fergus mac Erc in Kintyre, d. 501 • Gabran mac Domangart mac
Fergus, d. 558 • Aedan mac Gabran, d. circa 610
– Battle of Degsastan, 603 • By 650, 7 kings and 7 kin groups,
one high king – High kings descended from Fergus
• Ferchar ‘the Tall’, r. 680-696 – Reunites Scots
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Dal Riada kingship stone at Dunadd, Scotland
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Early Pictish kings • Bridei mac Maelcon, d. 584
– Royal center at Craig Phadraig – Possibly a son of Maelgwn
Gwynedd • By 668, English Northumbrians
rule southern Picts and take tribute from the Scots
• Bridei mac Bili, d. 693 – Battle of Nechtansmere, 685
(commemorated on Aberlemno Stone)
• Nechton mac Derelei, r. 706-724 – Sought religious advisers from
Northumbria • Oengus mac Fergus, r. 729-761
– Dominated Dal Riada
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Viking raids and settlement Left map from Gwyn Jones, A History of the Vikings. Right map from
Henry Loyn, The Vikings in Britain.
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Viking settlement in England Map from Gwyn Jones, A History of the Vikings
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The union of Scots and Picts The Stone of Scone, kingship stone of the kings of Scotland.
• Kenneth mac Alpin, r. 843-858 – Moved Dal Riada court
from Dunadd to Scone – Brought relics of St.
Columba to Dunkeld
• Duncan I, r. 1034-1040 • Macbeth MacFindlay,
r. 1040-1057 • Malcolm III (Malcolm
Canmore), r. 1058-1093
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Those ranking beneath the kings
• Professional learned classes – Druids – Poets (Irish fili, Welsh beirdd) – Jurists/lawyers (Irish brithemain/brehon, Welsh
cyngaws and canllaw) • Society and law
– Face price (Irish log n’enech, Welsh wynebwerth) – Insult/injury price (Irish díre, Welsh sarhaed) – Compensation for homicide (Irish éraic, Welsh
galanas)