Labraid Loingsech
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Labraid Loingsech also known as Labraid Lorc, son of Ailill Áine, son of Lóegaire Lorc
, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland
. He was considered the ancestor of the Laigin
, who gave their name to the province of Leinster
. An early dynastic poem calls him "a god among the gods", suggesting he may once have been an ancestor-deity of the Laigin.
According to the historical tradition, His grandfather, Lóegaire Lorc, had been High King, but was treacherously killed by his brother Cobthach Cóel Breg
. Cobthach also paid someone to poison Lóegaire's son, Ailill Áine, who had taken the kingship of Leinster, and forced Ailill's young son to eat a portion of his father and grandfather's hearts, and to swallow a mouse. Struck dumb by the trauma, the boy became known as Móen Ollom, "the mute scholar". Later, he was hit on the shin during a game of hurling
, and cried out "I am hurt!" From then on he was called Labraid, "he speaks".
The Lebor Gabála Érenn
says Labraid was exiled overseas, and after thirty years made peace with Cobthach and was given the province of Leinster. Various versions of the story of Labraid's exile are told. In one, a prose tale in the Book of Leinster
, Cobthach holds an assembly in Tara
, and asks who the most generous man in Ireland is. His poet, Ferchertne, and harper, Craiftine, immediately answer "Labraid", so Cobthach exiles the three of them from his court. They take refuge with Scoriath, king of the Fir Morca in Munster
. Scoriath has a daughter, Moriath, who falls in love with Labraid, but her mother always sleeps with one eye open to keep an eye on her. Craiftine plays a slumber-strain on his harp to put her completely to sleep, and Labraid spends the night with Moriath. When her mother wakes up she realises what has happened, Labraid confesses and the pair are married. With the help of Scoriath's army and Craiftine's harp, Labraid invades Leinster, and makes peace with Cobthach.
Geoffrey Keating
tells a different story. After spending some time with Scoriath in Munster, Labraid goes to the continent, where he gains great fame as the leader of the bodyguard of the king of France, who is related to Labraid's grandmother, Cessair Chrothach (who was the daughter of a king of the Franks
according to the Lebor Gabála). Moriath, hearing of his great deeds, falls in love with him from a distance. She writes a love song for him, and sends Craiftine to Gaul to sing it to him. Labraid is delighted with the song, and decides to return to Ireland and reclaim his territory. The king of France equips him with ships and 2,200 men. His followers are known as Laigin after the broad blue-grey iron spearheads (láigne) they use. T. F. O'Rahilly
attempted to explain the confusion over the location of Labraid's exile by suggesting that the name Fir Morca, a people located in Munster in the Book of Leinster account, was a corruption of Armorica
in north-west France.
The peace between Labraid and Cobthach broke down. The Lebor Gabála says there was war between them. In the tale in the Book of Leinster, Labraid invites Cobthach, along with thirty kings of Ireland, to visit him, and builds an iron house at Dind Ríg to receive them, which takes a year to build. Cobthach refuses to enter the house unless Labraid's mother and jester go in first. They do so. Labraid serves his guests food and ale, and chains the house shut. With the aid of 150 pairs of bellows, he burns the house down, and Cobthach and 700 of his men, along with Labraid's mother and jester, are roasted to death. The jester had been promised that his family would be freed, and Labraid's mother was happy to die for the sake of her son's honour.
The story is told, similar to a legend of the Greek
king Midas
, that Labraid had horse's ears, something he was concerned to keep quiet. He had his hair cut once a year, and the barber, who was chosen by lot, was immediately put to death. A widow, hearing that her only son had been chosen to cut the king's hair, begged the king not to kill him, and he agreed, so long as the barber kept his secret. The burden of the secret was so heavy that the barber fell ill. A druid
advised him to go to a crossroads and tell his secret to the first tree he came to, and he would be relieved of his burden and be well again. He told the secret to a large willow
. Soon after this, however, Craiftine broke his harp, and made a new one out of the very willow the barber had told his secret to. Whenever he played it, the harp sang "Labraid Lorc has horse's ears". Labraid repented of all the barbers he had put to death and admitted his secret.
He ruled for ten, nineteen or thirty years, depending on the source consulted, and took vengeance on Cobthach's children, before being killed by Cobthach's son Meilge Molbthach
. The Lebor Gabála dates Cobthach's death and Labraid's accession to Christmas Eve, 307 BC, and also synchronises his reign to that of Ptolemy III Euergetes
(246-222 BC). The chronology of Keating's Foras Feasa ar Éirinn dates his reign to 379-369 BC, the Annals of the Four Masters
to 542-523 BC.
Lóegaire Lorc
Lóegaire Lorc, son of Úgaine Mor, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. The Lebor Gabála Érenn says he succeeded directly after his father was murdered by Bodbchad, although Geoffrey Keating and the Annals of the Four Masters agree that Bodbchad...
, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland
High King of Ireland
The High Kings of Ireland were sometimes historical and sometimes legendary figures who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over the whole of Ireland. Medieval and early modern Irish literature portrays an almost unbroken sequence of High Kings, ruling from Tara over a hierarchy of...
. He was considered the ancestor of the Laigin
Laigin
The Laigin, modern spelling Laighin , were a population group of early Ireland who gave their name to the province of Leinster...
, who gave their name to the province of Leinster
Leinster
Leinster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the east of Ireland. It comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Mide, Osraige and Leinster. Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the historic fifths of Leinster and Mide gradually merged, mainly due to the impact of the Pale, which straddled...
. An early dynastic poem calls him "a god among the gods", suggesting he may once have been an ancestor-deity of the Laigin.
According to the historical tradition, His grandfather, Lóegaire Lorc, had been High King, but was treacherously killed by his brother Cobthach Cóel Breg
Cobthach Cóel Breg
Cobthach Cóel Breg, son of Úgaine Mor, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. He took power after murdering his brother Lóegaire Lorc. The story is told that he was so consumed with jealousy for his brother that he wasted away to almost nothing,...
. Cobthach also paid someone to poison Lóegaire's son, Ailill Áine, who had taken the kingship of Leinster, and forced Ailill's young son to eat a portion of his father and grandfather's hearts, and to swallow a mouse. Struck dumb by the trauma, the boy became known as Móen Ollom, "the mute scholar". Later, he was hit on the shin during a game of hurling
Hurling
Hurling is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic origin, administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and played with sticks called hurleys and a ball called a sliotar. Hurling is the national game of Ireland. The game has prehistoric origins, has been played for at least 3,000 years, and...
, and cried out "I am hurt!" From then on he was called Labraid, "he speaks".
The Lebor Gabála Érenn
Lebor Gabála Érenn
Lebor Gabála Érenn is the Middle Irish title of a loose collection of poems and prose narratives recounting the mythical origins and history of the Irish from the creation of the world down to the Middle Ages...
says Labraid was exiled overseas, and after thirty years made peace with Cobthach and was given the province of Leinster. Various versions of the story of Labraid's exile are told. In one, a prose tale in the Book of Leinster
Book of Leinster
The Book of Leinster , is a medieval Irish manuscript compiled ca. 1160 and now kept in Trinity College, Dublin, under the shelfmark MS H 2.18...
, Cobthach holds an assembly in Tara
Hill of Tara
The Hill of Tara , located near the River Boyne, is an archaeological complex that runs between Navan and Dunshaughlin in County Meath, Leinster, Ireland...
, and asks who the most generous man in Ireland is. His poet, Ferchertne, and harper, Craiftine, immediately answer "Labraid", so Cobthach exiles the three of them from his court. They take refuge with Scoriath, king of the Fir Morca in Munster
Munster
Munster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the south of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial purposes...
. Scoriath has a daughter, Moriath, who falls in love with Labraid, but her mother always sleeps with one eye open to keep an eye on her. Craiftine plays a slumber-strain on his harp to put her completely to sleep, and Labraid spends the night with Moriath. When her mother wakes up she realises what has happened, Labraid confesses and the pair are married. With the help of Scoriath's army and Craiftine's harp, Labraid invades Leinster, and makes peace with Cobthach.
Geoffrey Keating
Geoffrey Keating
Seathrún Céitinn, known in English as Geoffrey Keating, was a 17th century Irish Roman Catholic priest, poet and historian. He was born in County Tipperary c. 1569, and died c. 1644...
tells a different story. After spending some time with Scoriath in Munster, Labraid goes to the continent, where he gains great fame as the leader of the bodyguard of the king of France, who is related to Labraid's grandmother, Cessair Chrothach (who was the daughter of a king of the Franks
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
according to the Lebor Gabála). Moriath, hearing of his great deeds, falls in love with him from a distance. She writes a love song for him, and sends Craiftine to Gaul to sing it to him. Labraid is delighted with the song, and decides to return to Ireland and reclaim his territory. The king of France equips him with ships and 2,200 men. His followers are known as Laigin after the broad blue-grey iron spearheads (láigne) they use. T. F. O'Rahilly
T. F. O'Rahilly
Thomas Francis O'Rahilly was an Irish scholar of the Celtic languages, particularly in the fields of Historical linguistics and Irish dialects. He was a member of the Royal Irish Academy.-Biography:He was born in Listowel, County Kerry, Ireland...
attempted to explain the confusion over the location of Labraid's exile by suggesting that the name Fir Morca, a people located in Munster in the Book of Leinster account, was a corruption of Armorica
Armorica
Armorica or Aremorica is the name given in ancient times to the part of Gaul that includes the Brittany peninsula and the territory between the Seine and Loire rivers, extending inland to an indeterminate point and down the Atlantic coast...
in north-west France.
The peace between Labraid and Cobthach broke down. The Lebor Gabála says there was war between them. In the tale in the Book of Leinster, Labraid invites Cobthach, along with thirty kings of Ireland, to visit him, and builds an iron house at Dind Ríg to receive them, which takes a year to build. Cobthach refuses to enter the house unless Labraid's mother and jester go in first. They do so. Labraid serves his guests food and ale, and chains the house shut. With the aid of 150 pairs of bellows, he burns the house down, and Cobthach and 700 of his men, along with Labraid's mother and jester, are roasted to death. The jester had been promised that his family would be freed, and Labraid's mother was happy to die for the sake of her son's honour.
The story is told, similar to a legend of the Greek
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
king Midas
Midas
For the legend of Gordias, a person who was taken by the people and made King, in obedience to the command of the oracle, see Gordias.Midas or King Midas is popularly remembered in Greek mythology for his ability to turn everything he touched into gold. This was called the Golden touch, or the...
, that Labraid had horse's ears, something he was concerned to keep quiet. He had his hair cut once a year, and the barber, who was chosen by lot, was immediately put to death. A widow, hearing that her only son had been chosen to cut the king's hair, begged the king not to kill him, and he agreed, so long as the barber kept his secret. The burden of the secret was so heavy that the barber fell ill. A druid
Druid
A druid was a member of the priestly class in Britain, Ireland, and Gaul, and possibly other parts of Celtic western Europe, during the Iron Age....
advised him to go to a crossroads and tell his secret to the first tree he came to, and he would be relieved of his burden and be well again. He told the secret to a large willow
Willow
Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
. Soon after this, however, Craiftine broke his harp, and made a new one out of the very willow the barber had told his secret to. Whenever he played it, the harp sang "Labraid Lorc has horse's ears". Labraid repented of all the barbers he had put to death and admitted his secret.
He ruled for ten, nineteen or thirty years, depending on the source consulted, and took vengeance on Cobthach's children, before being killed by Cobthach's son Meilge Molbthach
Meilge Molbthach
Meilge Molbthach , son of Cobthach Cóel Breg, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. He took power after killing his predecessor, and his father's killer, Labraid Loingsech. He ruled for seven or seventeen years, until he was killed by Mug Corb,...
. The Lebor Gabála dates Cobthach's death and Labraid's accession to Christmas Eve, 307 BC, and also synchronises his reign to that of Ptolemy III Euergetes
Ptolemy III Euergetes
-Family:Euergetes was the eldest son of Ptolemy II Philadelphus and his first wife, Arsinoe I, and came to power in 246 BC upon the death of his father.He married Berenice of Cyrene in the year corresponding to 244/243 BC; and their children were:...
(246-222 BC). The chronology of Keating's Foras Feasa ar Éirinn dates his reign to 379-369 BC, the Annals of the Four Masters
Annals of the Four Masters
The Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland or the Annals of the Four Masters are a chronicle of medieval Irish history...
to 542-523 BC.