Bardenas Reales, a rare desert in Navarre, Spain. 🇪🇸
This arid badlands region was located near the borderlands of the middle Ebro river valley, which were disputed between the Celtiberian Lusones tribe and the Basque people. The conflict seems to have usually favored the Celtiberians, as we know of at least one Basque town, Ilurcis (now Alfaro, La Rioja), which had been taken by the Lusones. It was later taken by Rome and renamed Graccurris. The Basques eventually benefitted from the Sertorian War (82-72 B.C.), siding with the Roman government against the insurgent general Quintus Sertorius. The Celtiberian town of Calagurris (now Calahorra, La Rioja) —an ally of Sertorius— was besieged and taken after putting up stiff resistance, then handed over to the Basques as a reward for their loyalty. Other nearby Celtiberian towns included Cascantum (now Cascante, Navarre). The Bardenas themselves have historically been a useful hideout for bandits and marauders, such as the famous Sancho Rota (hunted down and killed by king John II of Aragón in 1452). They were probably also a useful hideout in more ancient times, likely for Basque raiding-bands targeting Celtiberian settlements to the south and west. The Romans certainly encountered bands of marauders in the area: The warlord Tanginus, who was defeated in 141 B.C; by Roman consul Quintus Pompeius, had probably been using the Bardenas Reales as his hideout.
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This arid badlands region was located near the borderlands of the middle Ebro river valley, which were disputed between the Celtiberian Lusones tribe and the Basque people. The conflict seems to have usually favored the Celtiberians, as we know of at least one Basque town, Ilurcis (now Alfaro, La Rioja), which had been taken by the Lusones. It was later taken by Rome and renamed Graccurris. The Basques eventually benefitted from the Sertorian War (82-72 B.C.), siding with the Roman government against the insurgent general Quintus Sertorius. The Celtiberian town of Calagurris (now Calahorra, La Rioja) —an ally of Sertorius— was besieged and taken after putting up stiff resistance, then handed over to the Basques as a reward for their loyalty. Other nearby Celtiberian towns included Cascantum (now Cascante, Navarre). The Bardenas themselves have historically been a useful hideout for bandits and marauders, such as the famous Sancho Rota (hunted down and killed by king John II of Aragón in 1452). They were probably also a useful hideout in more ancient times, likely for Basque raiding-bands targeting Celtiberian settlements to the south and west. The Romans certainly encountered bands of marauders in the area: The warlord Tanginus, who was defeated in 141 B.C; by Roman consul Quintus Pompeius, had probably been using the Bardenas Reales as his hideout.
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Emhain Macha: Navan Fort, in county Armagh, Northern Ireland. 🇬🇧 🇮🇪
Navan Fort is the site where ritual inaugurations were made for the ancient kings of Ulster; it was formerly known as Emhain Macha. The Clanna Rudhraige dynasty ruling Ulster at that time (late La Tène and early Roman periods) were apparently connected to Scotland somehow, since they are traditionally identified as Cruithne, i.e. Picts. However, genetic data has not been able to confirm this. Rather, paternal lineages (I2a) seemingly originating in southern Scotland —particularly Dumfries and Galloway— are common in eastern Ulster, even among people of native stock, suggesting a gene-flow that predates the Plantation of Ulster with mostly-Scottish Protestants. It’s possible that ‘Cruithne’ was just an archaic Gaelic rendering of the Brittonic word Prydain, meaning Britain or Britons (Q-Celtic languages had no P, substituting a hard C instead). Formerly, there was no distinction made between Britons and Picts, both being thought of as belonging to the same ethnos and called ‘Men of Britain’ (Welsh: Gwŷr Prydain or Gwŷr Prydyn).
Tradition from the Ulster Cycle, the various Annals, and the Cycle of Kings, tells of how the Kingdom of Ulster was broken down by the High Kings of the Connachta dynasty —particularly Cormac, son of Art, and eventually mostly destroyed by the invading Airgíalla in the 4th century AD. Centuries before that, we are told in the Ulster Cycle that it had been the mightiest of the Irish kingdoms, the Clanna Rudhraige being noted as “one of the three races of mighty men” in Ireland at that time, alongside the Gamanraide of north Connacht, and the Clanna Dedad of far west Munster. Still, for centuries the inhabitants of Ulster —particularly the Connachta-derived Uí Néill— continued being known as the most warlike and indomitable of all the Irish, and under the Uí Néill, Ulster soon recovered its place as the most powerful of the Irish provinces. As for Emhain Macha, centuries after its destruction and abandonment, it experienced a resurrection of sorts, when St. Patrick founded the city of Armagh, which was destined to be Ireland’s chief ecclesiastical centre for centuries to come.
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Navan Fort is the site where ritual inaugurations were made for the ancient kings of Ulster; it was formerly known as Emhain Macha. The Clanna Rudhraige dynasty ruling Ulster at that time (late La Tène and early Roman periods) were apparently connected to Scotland somehow, since they are traditionally identified as Cruithne, i.e. Picts. However, genetic data has not been able to confirm this. Rather, paternal lineages (I2a) seemingly originating in southern Scotland —particularly Dumfries and Galloway— are common in eastern Ulster, even among people of native stock, suggesting a gene-flow that predates the Plantation of Ulster with mostly-Scottish Protestants. It’s possible that ‘Cruithne’ was just an archaic Gaelic rendering of the Brittonic word Prydain, meaning Britain or Britons (Q-Celtic languages had no P, substituting a hard C instead). Formerly, there was no distinction made between Britons and Picts, both being thought of as belonging to the same ethnos and called ‘Men of Britain’ (Welsh: Gwŷr Prydain or Gwŷr Prydyn).
Tradition from the Ulster Cycle, the various Annals, and the Cycle of Kings, tells of how the Kingdom of Ulster was broken down by the High Kings of the Connachta dynasty —particularly Cormac, son of Art, and eventually mostly destroyed by the invading Airgíalla in the 4th century AD. Centuries before that, we are told in the Ulster Cycle that it had been the mightiest of the Irish kingdoms, the Clanna Rudhraige being noted as “one of the three races of mighty men” in Ireland at that time, alongside the Gamanraide of north Connacht, and the Clanna Dedad of far west Munster. Still, for centuries the inhabitants of Ulster —particularly the Connachta-derived Uí Néill— continued being known as the most warlike and indomitable of all the Irish, and under the Uí Néill, Ulster soon recovered its place as the most powerful of the Irish provinces. As for Emhain Macha, centuries after its destruction and abandonment, it experienced a resurrection of sorts, when St. Patrick founded the city of Armagh, which was destined to be Ireland’s chief ecclesiastical centre for centuries to come.
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The flag of Wales 🏴 probably owes its origin to a type of Dacian military standard in the form of a windsock, known as draco, which had become popular in the late Roman empire. Still, it’s also probable that the draco evoked serpent myths that had existed…
Pictish symbol stone depicting “serpent and Z rod” and “double-disk” symbols, from Glen Urquhart, near Inverness and the shores of Loch Ness, Scotland; 6th or 7th century AD. 🏴
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The Battle of Gergovia; 52 B.C; fought near Clermont-Ferrand in the region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France. ⚜️🇫🇷 This was a battle of the Gallic Wars (58-50 B.C.); Julius Caesar’s conquest of Gaul. In 52 B.C; a young Gallic noble named Vercingetorix led a…
Vercingetorix charges over a slain Roman at the Battle of Gergovia; 52 B.C. 1902 Bronze statue by Auguste Bartholdi in Clermont-Ferrand, France. ⚜️🇫🇷
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Copper kantharos decorated in La Tène style and with a horse figurine on top, from the chariot-burial of a Gallic ruler/noble at Waldalgesheim in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany; 4th century B.C. 🇩🇪
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The Celtiberian hill-fort known as Castilviejo (Spanish: “Old Castle”), near Guijosa, in Guadalajara province, Spain. 🇪🇸
Castilviejo has one of the few examples in ancient Europe of a stone chevaux-de-frise, similar to the one found at the better known Dun Aengus in Ireland. The settlement is triangular in shape and was built on a spur, with two sections of wall protecting its north and south sides. The east is protected by two sections of impassable chevaux-de-frise flanking a narrow corridor between them. Behind is a ditch with an opening on the north side. Anyone coming in through that corridor would have to make a left turn and go along the ditch, completely exposed, in order to enter the village. Dating is uncertain, but it’s speculated to have been built and inhabited between the 8th and 4th centuries B.C.
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Castilviejo has one of the few examples in ancient Europe of a stone chevaux-de-frise, similar to the one found at the better known Dun Aengus in Ireland. The settlement is triangular in shape and was built on a spur, with two sections of wall protecting its north and south sides. The east is protected by two sections of impassable chevaux-de-frise flanking a narrow corridor between them. Behind is a ditch with an opening on the north side. Anyone coming in through that corridor would have to make a left turn and go along the ditch, completely exposed, in order to enter the village. Dating is uncertain, but it’s speculated to have been built and inhabited between the 8th and 4th centuries B.C.
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Pictish symbol stone depicting “serpent and Z rod” and “double-disk” symbols, from Glen Urquhart, near Inverness and the shores of Loch Ness, Scotland; 6th or 7th century AD. 🏴 Celtic Europe - channel link: https://www.tg-me.com/CelticEurope
Looking at these Pictish serpent symbols, I can’t help but notice they’re entwined on a kind of stylized rod of sorts and wonder if they weren’t intended as representations of the ‘brazen serpent’ episode from the Old Testament Bible (Numbers 21:4-9). They are, after all, dated to the early Christian period.
Pictured: The Brazen Serpent; painting by José Leonardo (17th century).
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Pictured: The Brazen Serpent; painting by José Leonardo (17th century).
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View from near Killala, in county Mayo, Ireland: Rathfran Priory in the foreground, Ox Mountains (county Sligo) in the distance. 🇮🇪
In his Collectanea, a biography of St. Patrick, the 7th century author Tírechán —who was a native of that area— stated that there was once a vast forest there known as Focluth. In his Confession, St. Patrick spoke of having a dream in which he saw the great woodland of Focluth and the Irish people who lived there, begging him to return to Ireland. He had escaped a life of slavery in Ireland to return to his native Britain and pursue a career as a clergyman. It was that dream that persuaded him to return and preach the gospel to the Irish. The region became known as Tirawley (Irish: Tír Amhlaidh), named after a contemporary chieftain, Amalgaid, son of Fiachrae. The Uí Fiachrach provided many kings of Connacht and even some High Kings of Ireland. Nath Í, son of Fiachrae was one such High King, and it may have been one of his own raids on Britain that resulted in the capture and enslavement of Patrick. Nath Í’s son Ailill Molt was also High King during the time that Patrick was living and preaching in Ireland.
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In his Collectanea, a biography of St. Patrick, the 7th century author Tírechán —who was a native of that area— stated that there was once a vast forest there known as Focluth. In his Confession, St. Patrick spoke of having a dream in which he saw the great woodland of Focluth and the Irish people who lived there, begging him to return to Ireland. He had escaped a life of slavery in Ireland to return to his native Britain and pursue a career as a clergyman. It was that dream that persuaded him to return and preach the gospel to the Irish. The region became known as Tirawley (Irish: Tír Amhlaidh), named after a contemporary chieftain, Amalgaid, son of Fiachrae. The Uí Fiachrach provided many kings of Connacht and even some High Kings of Ireland. Nath Í, son of Fiachrae was one such High King, and it may have been one of his own raids on Britain that resulted in the capture and enslavement of Patrick. Nath Í’s son Ailill Molt was also High King during the time that Patrick was living and preaching in Ireland.
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Castle Dore Hill-Fort, in Cornwall; occupation 5th-4th century B.C. Possibly reoccupied 5th-6th century AD. 🏴🏴🇫🇷
At Castle Dore was found the so-called “Tristan Stone”, bearing the Latin inscription DRUSTANUS HIC IACIT CUNOMORI FILIUS CUM DOMINA OUSILLA (“Here lies Drustan, son of Conomor, with the lady Ousilla”). The stone has been thought by some as proof that the legend of Tristan and Iseult was based on real historical events, as the Pictish name “Drustan” is the original form of the later Tristan and Ousilla has been thought of as a possible Latinization on the name Eselt, i.e. later Iseult. Wrmonoc of Landévennec identified Conomor with the legendary king Mark of Cornwall in his Life of St. Pol de Léon. Most versions of the story tell of king Mark sending his nephew Tristan —the inscription identifies him rather as a son— to Ireland to fetch his bride-to-be Iseult, with the unforeseen development that Tristan and Iseult fall in love and have an affair. Mark is said to have found out about the scandal and to have organized manhunts to catch and punish them. Conomor “the Cursed” is known from other sources, where we find him ruling in Brittany as a vassal of the Frankish king Childebert I (AD 496-558). He apparently controlled realms in both Brittany and Cornwall.
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At Castle Dore was found the so-called “Tristan Stone”, bearing the Latin inscription DRUSTANUS HIC IACIT CUNOMORI FILIUS CUM DOMINA OUSILLA (“Here lies Drustan, son of Conomor, with the lady Ousilla”). The stone has been thought by some as proof that the legend of Tristan and Iseult was based on real historical events, as the Pictish name “Drustan” is the original form of the later Tristan and Ousilla has been thought of as a possible Latinization on the name Eselt, i.e. later Iseult. Wrmonoc of Landévennec identified Conomor with the legendary king Mark of Cornwall in his Life of St. Pol de Léon. Most versions of the story tell of king Mark sending his nephew Tristan —the inscription identifies him rather as a son— to Ireland to fetch his bride-to-be Iseult, with the unforeseen development that Tristan and Iseult fall in love and have an affair. Mark is said to have found out about the scandal and to have organized manhunts to catch and punish them. Conomor “the Cursed” is known from other sources, where we find him ruling in Brittany as a vassal of the Frankish king Childebert I (AD 496-558). He apparently controlled realms in both Brittany and Cornwall.
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Castle Dore Hill-Fort, in Cornwall; occupation 5th-4th century B.C. Possibly reoccupied 5th-6th century AD. 🏴🏴🇫🇷 At Castle Dore was found the so-called “Tristan Stone”, bearing the Latin inscription DRUSTANUS HIC IACIT CUNOMORI FILIUS CUM DOMINA…
King “Mark of Cornwall”, a.k.a. Conomor “the Cursed”; 1905 drawing by Howard Pyle. 🇫🇷
Conomor is known from Breton history as a king of Domnonée. He was said to have murdered the previous king, Jonas, and married his wife, later causing her to flee with her son Judael to the court of the Frankish king. Prior to this he had only held the minor fiefdom of Poher (later Carhaix-Ploughee) in Brittany, and possibly others across the channel in Cornwall. His attempts to have Judael murdered led to an assembly of Christian bishops —including Gildas and Samson of Dol— in which he was excommunicated. He later married Tryphine, daughter of count Waroch I of Vannes, with whom he’d been at war, apparently as part of a truce arrangement. But Conomor ended up murdering both Tryphine and her son Trémeur. This shocking development seems to have inspired the legend of the wife-murdering character “Bluebeard”. After the death of Childebert, Conomor unwisely interfered in Frankish affairs by sheltering the rebellious prince Chram and raiding France with him. Chram’s father, king Chlothar I of France, responded with an invasion of Brittany, defeating Chramn and Conomor in a battle fought near Plonéour-Ménez, during the winter of AD 560. Conomor was killed in the rout, and Chram was hunted down, captured, and later executed.
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Conomor is known from Breton history as a king of Domnonée. He was said to have murdered the previous king, Jonas, and married his wife, later causing her to flee with her son Judael to the court of the Frankish king. Prior to this he had only held the minor fiefdom of Poher (later Carhaix-Ploughee) in Brittany, and possibly others across the channel in Cornwall. His attempts to have Judael murdered led to an assembly of Christian bishops —including Gildas and Samson of Dol— in which he was excommunicated. He later married Tryphine, daughter of count Waroch I of Vannes, with whom he’d been at war, apparently as part of a truce arrangement. But Conomor ended up murdering both Tryphine and her son Trémeur. This shocking development seems to have inspired the legend of the wife-murdering character “Bluebeard”. After the death of Childebert, Conomor unwisely interfered in Frankish affairs by sheltering the rebellious prince Chram and raiding France with him. Chram’s father, king Chlothar I of France, responded with an invasion of Brittany, defeating Chramn and Conomor in a battle fought near Plonéour-Ménez, during the winter of AD 560. Conomor was killed in the rout, and Chram was hunted down, captured, and later executed.
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Castle Dore Hill-Fort, in Cornwall; occupation 5th-4th century B.C. Possibly reoccupied 5th-6th century AD. 🏴🏴🇫🇷 At Castle Dore was found the so-called “Tristan Stone”, bearing the Latin inscription DRUSTANUS HIC IACIT CUNOMORI FILIUS CUM DOMINA…
Many versions (mostly French) of the story of Tristan and Iseult are known, likely derived from a Welsh original. It’s possible that parts of that original tale can be reconstructed from various Welsh texts, particularly the Triads. “Drystan, son of Tallwch” is mentioned in several collections of Triads: The Twenty-Four Knights of Arthur’s Court (15th century) claims that he was one of Arthur’s retainers and a shapeshifting sorcerer like Arthur’s father Uthyr Pendragon. But the bit about shapeshifting is not found in other manuscripts and seems to be a late accretion. The Triads in the Red Book of Hergest call Drystan one of the three “diademed men” and one of the three “enemy subduers” of the island of Britain. The Peniarth 54 manuscript claims he was a seer or prophet, as well as one of the three “front-line leaders of battle” of the island of Britain. It also contains a tale repeated in other manuscripts: That Drystan tended the herds of pigs belonging to king Mark of Cornwall, while the original swineherd (rather than Drystan himself) travelled —apparently to Ireland— to fetch Esyllt (i.e. Isolde/Iseult). Arthur made several attempts to steal the pigs, using either stealth or trickery, but Drystan hindered him each time, sending him away empty-handed.
The rest of the original tale might be told in a 16th century Welsh manuscript called Ystorya Trystan. It tells of how the two lovers —outlawed— fled to Scotland, to hide in the Caledonian Forest. King Mark (“March, son of Meirchion” in Welsh) requests help from Arthur, and the latter leads a band of soldiers to Scotland to track the pair down. Arthur finds them, but Drystan walks fearlessly among the soldiers and no violence takes place. Drystan’s good friend Gwalchmai (later “Sir Gawain”) persuades him to negotiate, whereupon Arthur mediates between Drystan and Mark, decreeing that Esyllt will live with one man while the trees have leaves, then with the other while the trees are bare, allowing Mark his choice between summer and winter. Mark chooses the latter, since winter nights are longer. But Esyllt cleverly notes that three trees, holly, ivy and yew, never lose their leaves, and based on that, she’ll be with Drystan for as long as he lives.
Image: Tristan et Iseult en forêt; 1911 painting by Gaston Bussière.
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The rest of the original tale might be told in a 16th century Welsh manuscript called Ystorya Trystan. It tells of how the two lovers —outlawed— fled to Scotland, to hide in the Caledonian Forest. King Mark (“March, son of Meirchion” in Welsh) requests help from Arthur, and the latter leads a band of soldiers to Scotland to track the pair down. Arthur finds them, but Drystan walks fearlessly among the soldiers and no violence takes place. Drystan’s good friend Gwalchmai (later “Sir Gawain”) persuades him to negotiate, whereupon Arthur mediates between Drystan and Mark, decreeing that Esyllt will live with one man while the trees have leaves, then with the other while the trees are bare, allowing Mark his choice between summer and winter. Mark chooses the latter, since winter nights are longer. But Esyllt cleverly notes that three trees, holly, ivy and yew, never lose their leaves, and based on that, she’ll be with Drystan for as long as he lives.
Image: Tristan et Iseult en forêt; 1911 painting by Gaston Bussière.
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