3611
Online museum and repository for historical and ancestral knowledge.
Battle of the Allia; Gauls vs. Romans, 387 B.C. Illustration by Peter Dennis.
Historiographical comment: All sources describing this first battle between the Romans and the Gauls agree that it wasn’t much of a fight. The Romans were put to flight after putting up a feeble resistance, perhaps largely due to being intimidated by their opponents. But the sources differ as to the aftermath of the battle and subsequent sack of Rome. Writing in the 1st century, Livy and Plutarch recorded fanciful legends of Roman revenge: Supposedly, the Roman statesman Marcus Furius Camillus organized a new army with which he expelled the Celts from Rome and then defeated them in a series of vengeful military campaigns. However, the older sources, such as Polybius (2nd century B.C.) and Diodorus Siculus (1st century B.C.) do not mention “Camillus” at all. Rather, they simply say that Rome was unwittingly saved by the Venetians. The Gauls had been besieging some members of the Roman aristocracy in the Capitoline Hill who’d held out there during the sack. They only offered to accept a large payment in gold in return for leaving after they heard reports that their own homeland was under attack by a Venetian war-band. In a hurry to return and mount a defense, the Gauls accepted a bribe and left the Romans to recover. It is evident that the later stories about “Camillus” are mere myths inspired by bitterness, a testament to how humiliated the Romans felt by the entire ordeal, even five centuries later.
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The Irish hero Fionn mac Cumhaill meeting his father’s old friends for the first time. Illustration by Scottish artist Stephen Reid; 1932. 🇮🇪🏴
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Roman copy of a Greek statue (probably originally from Pergamon, in what’s now Turkey) depicting a Galatian warrior; Venice National Archaeological Museum. 🇮🇹
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“Peredur, son of Efrawg”; art by Alan Lee. 🏴🏴🏴
The Arthurian character Perceval was based on a historical king of sub-Roman York (Welsh: Caer Efrog, formerly rendered Efrawg or Ebrauc): Peredur Paladr-Hir (“Peredur of the long spear”), son of Eliffer Gosgorddfawr (“Eliffer of the great army”). Peredur ruled jointly with his brother Gwrgi, being successors to the kingship established in northern England by their ancestor Coel Hen. They were the last Celtic kings of York. Both were killed by Anglian invaders at the Battle of Caer Greu, which took place around AD 580 according to the Annals of Wales. The Welsh Triads state that they’d been abandoned by their war-band to face the enemy alone, and name their Anglian opponent as “Ada Glinmaur” (Ada “of the large knee”); either Ida of Bamburgh or his son, Adda. Their kingdom was then taken over to form a new Anglian polity called Deira.
A few years prior to their deaths, Peredur and Gwrgi had won infamy for taking part in the bloody in-fighting that weakened the unity of the northern Britons. Notably, they’d quarrelled with a cousin named Gwenddoleu, son of Ceidio, who ruled a polity centered on Arfderydd (now Arthuret, in Cumbria, England). Teaming up with king Rhydderch Hael of Alt Clut (Strathclyde in Scotland), they defeated and killed Gwenddoleu in the particularly bloody Battle of Arfderydd. This seems to have set in motion a series of cruel wars in northern Britain. Welsh poetry for example, describes destructive raids and battles unleashed on Strathclyde by the Scottish king of Dál Riata, Áedán, son of Gabráin, who was keen to avenge Gwenddoleu; the two having been close friends.
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Murchad, son of High King Brian Boru, captures a Norse warrior at the Battle of Clontarf; 23 April, AD 1014. Art by Angus McBride. 🇮🇪
The battle of Clontarf, fought just outside Dublin, was the last major battle fought between between the native Irish and the Norse. Accounts of the battle can be found in the Cogadh Gaedhel re Gallaibh (Irish: “The War of the Irish with the Foreigners”) and Njál’s Saga, as well as in the various annals.
The battle was a result of a power struggle in Ireland between High King Brian Boru and the Irish king of Leinster, Máel Mórdha, mac Murchadha. The Norse of Dublin, Orkney and the Isle of Man took the side of Máel Mórdha’s and greatly bolstered his forces. Máel Mórdha and the Norse king of Dublin, Sygtrygg Silkenbeard, had revolted against Brian’s overlordship and called upon their allies to meet them outside Dublin for a violent showdown with Brian and his forces. The result was a brutal mutual slaughter, both armies suffering catastrophic casualties. Among the killed were king Brian himself, his son and designated heir Murchad, his grandson Toirdelbach, and the greater part of his army, including numerous provincial subject kings. On the other side fell the king of Leinster Máel Mórdha, the Norse jarl of Orkney Sigurd “the Stout” Hlodvirsson, the Manx leader Brodir (who was credited with having killed Brian personally), and nearly their entire armies.
Brian’s army had won a pointless, Cadmean victory (a victory involving one’s own ruin). The main beneficiaries of the battle were his son Donnchad, who became the next king of Thomond in succession to Brian, and king Sygtrygg of Dublin, who hadn’t fought in the battle and was thus rid of Brian’s oppressive yoke. The power of Dublin however, and of the Vikings in Ireland generally, had been permanently broken.
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15th century portrait of king Coel Hen of northern Britain, from a Welsh language version of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s History of the Kings of Britain. 🏴🏴🏴
Coel “the Old” was a 5th century ruler who founded a kingdom in northern England in the aftermath of the collapse of Roman rule. He is believed by many to have been the inspiration for the popular English nursery rhyme “Old King Cole”. Coel’s origins are obscure and it’s uncertain how he managed to coalesce such a huge polity, which stretched from the English Midlands to the borders of Scotland, and was probably centered in York. Certainly he had an alliance with the Brythonic Kingdom of Alt Clut, located in Scotland, and it appears that between them both they conquered all the kingdoms between Hadrian’s Wall and the Forth-Clyde Isthmus: All of these kingdoms were later ruled by dynasties descended either from Coel, or from king Cinuit of Alt Clut.
This policy of alliances and conquests in northern Britain was no doubt part of a strategy to bolster the frontier against marauding bands of Picts and Irish, who’d been plaguing Britain even before the collapse of Roman rule. This is probably where Coel got his other nickname: Godebog (“shelterer”). However, his efforts ultimately proved insufficient. Scottish and Welsh traditions, some recorded by Hector Boece, tell of a spectacular takedown of Coel by the invading Picts and Scots (“Scoti” was the name given in Latin sources to Irish people back then). Coel’s meddling in the north seems to have provoked the Picts and Scots to band together and raid Coel’s main ally, the Kingdom of Alt Clut. Coel responded by leading a huge army north, which overtook and surrounded the invaders in their camp near the river Doon in Ayrshire, Scotland. In a sudden turn of fortunes, the Scots and Picts made a desperate night attack on Coel’s camp, defeating his army with great slaughter. Coel fled from the battle, eventually being caught and killed in a bog near Tarbolton, which is still known as “Coilsfield”. After Coel’s death, his kingdom was divided between his sons Ceneu (in York) and Gorbanian (Kingdom of Brynaich in Northumberland). His disastrous end may be what inspired other British rulers, mainly Vortigern, to hire Germanic mercenaries, Jutes, Angles and Saxons, as a way to bolster the island’s defensive capabilities.
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On the ridge of Mynydd Drws-y-Coed, in Snowdonia National Park, Wales. 🏴
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The Cantabrian Mountains in Montaña de Riaño, León province, Spain. 🇪🇸 The Riaño reservoir in the distance.
This area has produced an unusually large number of ancient funerary steles with hybrid Latin-native inscriptions, more than any other part of Iberia. The steles mostly identify deceased individuals belonging to a Cantabrian tribe identified as Vadinienses, and have provided a remarkable insight into the pre-Latin language of these people. Personal names that are clearly identifiable as Celtic, and more specifically Celtiberian, are strikingly preponderant. Examples include Turenno (“Thunder”, like the Irish deity Tuireann), Medugena (“Mead-born”), Ubalacino (“Born of the Apple Tree”), Boddero (“Conqueror, Victor”), Cludamo (“Very famous”), Segisamo (“Most victorious”), Bovecio (“Cattle-man”), Origeno (“Gold-born”), Canus (“Wolf, Hound”), Virono (“Hero”, compare to Welsh Gwron), and many others. Many of the inscriptions mention units of the Roman army in which the deceased had served. This has led to speculation that military service was a driving force for the gradual language shift/loss among people, not just in Iberia, but across western Europe. It’s been noted that Gauls and Iberians tended to be overrepresented in Roman auxiliary units during the early imperial period.
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Digital 3D model of a carved stone decorated in La Tène style, found near the Hill of Mullaghmast, in county Kildare, Ireland; 6th century AD. 🇮🇪 National Museum of Ireland; Dublin.
The stone had been repurposed multiple times, being incorporated into the masonry of a FitzGerald castle, and later a local farm. It’s believed that the stone originally stood at the ritual inauguration site of Dún Áilinne, where kings of Leinster were traditionally inaugurated. The stone has several cuts, four on the left side and two on the top, which are believed to have been made with a sword or swords. It has been speculated that striking the stone with a sword, or using it to sharpen the weapon, may have been part of the inauguration ritual.
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Gold coin (1/4 stater) of the Gallic Treveri tribe, found at an unspecified location in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany; 2nd century B.C. 🇩🇪
The obverse of the coin shows a man wearing a laurel-crown (Greek motif signifying victory), while the reverse displays the common Gallic motif of a horse with a human head (possibly also a Greek-derived motif, representing the centaur Chiron, or the constellation Sagittarius). The Gallic Treveri tribe gave their mame to the city of Trier in Germany.
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Roman Legionaries of the 22nd Legion (Legio XXII “Deiotariana”) stationed in Egypt; unknown artist.
Legio XXII was formed during the life of king Deiotarus of Galatia (105 to 42 B.C.) by incorporating all or part of his Galatian army into Rome’s own. Before the legion was formed, Deiotarus had been a faithful ally of Rome and had helped them defeat king Mithridates VI of Pontus and king Tigranes II of Armenia in wars that saw the Romans and Galatians campaigning as far as Artashat in Armenia (Third Mithridatic War; 73-63 B.C.) Later, Galatian troops were incorporated officially into the Roman army as the 22nd legion; named after their king. They would fight against Pontus again, sharing a Roman defeat at the Battle of Nicopolis in 48 B.C; and a victory with Julius Caesar himself at the Battle of Zela the following year. Caesar wrote his famous phrase to the senate in the aftermath: Veni, vidi, vici (“I came, I saw, I conquered”).
At some point before 8 B.C; the legion was stationed in Egypt, where it took part in wars against Nubia and Parthia, and also in the Roman Siege of Jerusalem in AD 69-70. By then, it’s likely it was no longer staffed by Galatians, given the Roman habit of staffing military units with locals. The legion disappears from records after the year 119, and it’s been speculated that it was disbanded due to heavy losses during the Jewish Bar-Kokhba Revolt (AD 132-136).
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Kynance Cove, Cornwall.
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Digital facial reconstruction of a woman found buried at Whithorn Priory, in Galloway, Scotland; by the Cold Case Whithorn project. 🏴
The 20 year old woman was found buried on a bed of seashells near the priory’s high altar. She is thought to have lived at some point between the 12th and 14th centuries. The seashell burial is thought to indicate that she was a person of high status and likely a pilgrim who was visiting the tomb of St. Ninian, a 5th century Christian monk who was credited with founding the priory and converting the southern Picts to Christianity.
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Seleucid troops, including a Galatian mercenary (in blue), during the Parthian campaign of king Demetrius II Nicator (“the victorious”); 139-138 B.C. Art by Angus McBride.
King Demetrius II launched an invasion of Iran to try and recover the empire’s eastern territories, recently taken over by the nascent Parthian Kingdom. Contemporary sources indicate that he was initially successful and won several battles. However, he was later ambushed in the Zagros mountains, defeated, and taken prisoner by the Parthian king Mithridates I, a.k.a. “Arsaces”. The Seleucid Empire (one of the successor kingdoms of Alexander the Great’s Macedonian empire) then went into irreversible decline.
The Galatian mercenary in the illustration is based on two terracotta figurines found by archaeologists among the ruins of the ancient Greek city of Myrina, in Izmir province, Turkey. 🇹🇷 One figurine still had remnants of blue paint on it. Some commentaries on this illustration confusingly identify the soldier on the far right as a “Jewish” auxiliary, while the original work by McBride identifies him more accurately as an Idumaean (a.k.a. Edomites). The confusion comes from the fact that these two peoples intermarried and merged during this general period of history. However, said merger didn’t begin until two decades after the time of Demetrius Nicator. It was at some point between 115 and 110 B.C; as told by the historian Josephus, that the Jewish king John Hyrcanus conquered the Idumaeans militarily and forcibly converted them to Judaism. Ironically, the intermarriage between the two would even enable an Idumaean, Herod, son of Antipater, to become king of Judea, thus founding the Herodian Dynasty. After the Romans crushed a series of Jewish revolts, particularly the First Jewish-Roman War of 66-74 AD and the Bar Kokhba Revolt of 132-136 AD, large numbers of Jews were deported —mostly to Europe— and the distinction between Idumaeans and Jews stopped being observed, so that the merger was completed through continual intermarriage. Strangely, rabbinical judaism would develop a myth of projecting this Edomite identity upon those who were perceived as enemies of the Jewish people, claiming that Rome and its vassal nations, and by extension European Christendom, are the descendants of the Edomites.
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“Brennus and his share of the spoils”. Oil on canvas by French painter Paul Jamin; 1893. 🇮🇹🇫🇷
The painting depicts a scene during the Gallic Sack of Rome in 387 B.C. This was an incident early on in Rome’s history when the Romans foolishly interfered with the Gallic Senones tribe of Italy while the latter were besieging the Etruscan city of Clusium (now Chiusi, Tuscany). The Gauls had been carrying out a regime-change operation there and some Roman ambassadors came to try and mediate. They showed partiality to the Etruscans and then took part in the defense of the city, killing a Gallic chief by an unlucky throw of a javelin. The result was that the Gauls —led by their chieftain Brennus— marched their army on Rome, easily defeated the Roman army at the Battle of the Allia, then violently sacked the city. The Celts inflicted inordinate amounts of damage, plunder, slaughter, and humiliation before leaving the Romans alone upon receipt of a massive extortion payment in gold.
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Saint Kentigern ministers to Myrddin; stained glass from Stobo Kirk, in Peeblesshire, Scotland. 🏴
The scene depicts one of the final moments in the life of Myrddin Wyllt (Welsh: “Myrddin the Wild”), a celebrated bard and prophet of Brythonic tradition. Myrddin is believed to have inspired the fictional wizard of Arthurian lore known as “Merlin”. But this real-life Merlin would have never known Arthur, as he lived several generations after him in a far distant part of Britain. Moreover he was not, in fact, a “wizard”, but rather a minstrel who later became a prophet.
The pieced-together story tells of the bard Myrddin —also a warrior— and of his master, king Gwenddoleu, son of Ceidio of Arfderydd (now Arthuret in northern England). The two were notoriously rough-hewn and quarrelsome: Gwenddoleu was said by the Welsh Triads to have owned two pet birds —perhaps ravens or hawks— that he yoked together with a golden chain, and to whom he regularly fed the flesh of his vanquished enemies. The sharp-tongued Myrddin somehow instigated a war against kings Peredur and Gwrgi of Caer Efrog (York), Dunod, son of Pabo, and Rhydderch Hael (“the generous”) of Alt Clut (Strathclyde). This resulted in the brutal Battle of Arfderydd (around AD 573), in which the outnumbered Gwenddoleu was killed along with most of his army.
Having fought in the battle, Myrddin went mad from grief and horror, escaping to become a lone wanderer in the forests of southern Scotland. He was said to have acquired the gift of prophecy at some point, and the Dialogue of Myrddin and his Sister Gwendydd contains many of the prophecies attributed to him. The 15th century tale Lailoken and Kentigern tells of how after years of wandering alone and naked, Myrddin (aka “Lailoken” or Llallwgan) encountered the missionary St. Kentigern (Welsh: Cyndeyrn Garthwys; aka “Mungo”), and perceiving his death to be near at hand, converted to Christianity. That same day, Myrddin was murdered by the shepherds of a local chieftain named Meldred, being beaten, stoned, and thrown into the river Tweed where he was impaled on a stake, not far from where Stobo Kirk stands today.
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The bell shrine of Conall Cael, from Inishkeel monastery, in county Donegal, Ireland; early 12th century. 🇮🇪 The shrine is made from gold, silver, bronze, and rock crystal.
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Ritually killed iron sword and scabbard discovered in a cremation burial at the Celtiberian necropolis of La Requijada de Gormaz, in Soria province, Spain; 4th or 3rd century B.C. 🇪🇸
The sword and scabbard are of La Tène typology. The scabbard was decorated with pairs of stylized dragons, a motif most common in analogous objects from central Europe. It had been modified with attachments to strap and carry it according to Iberian usage rather than in the Gallic manner. This suggests that the sword had originally belonged to a Gaul, but was taken from him as a trophy by its later Celtiberian owner, who then used it throughout his lifetime. When he died, the trophy sword was ritually “killed” by being bent out of shape, before being deposited in the grave with his ashes, so as to accompany him into the afterlife. This also suggests that the sword was taken as a trophy in combat; such treatment was usually only given to weapons taken from vanquished enemies.
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Reconstructed Gallic village near Steinbach in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany: 2nd-1st century B.C. 🇩🇪 The interactive open-air museum is located beneath the highest mountain in the region, known as Donnersberg (images 5 & 6). Donnersberg once had a massive 240 hectare Celtic hill-fort built upon it; part of the wall of this settlement has been partially reconstructed (last photo).
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Portrait of king Urien of Rheged. 🏴🏴 Credit: Web: www.arthwys.com / X: @ActualAurochs.
Urien, son of Cynfarch Oer, was a late 6th century king in Sub-Roman Britain. He ruled the Kingdom of Rheged, a large and powerful polity in what’s now northern England and some parts of southern Scotland. Rheged was one of many Brythonic kingdoms that emerged from the fracturing of a larger polity that had been formed by Urien’s ancestor, Coel Hen (“Coel the Old”). These included Brynaich, Elmet, Ebrauc (York), Rheged, and a few others. Coel had formed his kingdom in the aftermath of the collapse of Roman rule in Britain (mid 5th century), and dedicated his life to fighting against the Pictish and Irish raiders who’d been plaguing Britain at the time; tradition has it that he died in battle against them.
Urien was the last Celtic king to exercise dominion in the Brythonic “Old North” (i.e. northern England/southern Scotland). He and his son, prince Owain (the inspiration for the Arthurian character Ywain) were credited with winning several battles: At Gwen Ystrad/Catraeth against the Britons of the Kingdom of Gododdin, at Alclud Ford against Anglian invaders, and at Argoed Llwyfain, also against Anglian invaders. Sadly, these victories against the Angles proved insufficient, and it was during conflict with them that Urien’s downfall came about. While besieging the invaders at Ynys Metcaut (now Lindisfarne), Urien was assassinated at the instigation of his supposed ally, king Morcant Bulc of Brynaich. The northern kingdoms lifted the siege, leaving the astonished Angles to recover. They then fell to destroying each other in a brutal war of brothers; Owain himself ended up dying in battle against the same Morcant. Rheged was so beset by its fellow Britons that it was forced to ally itself with the Angles, precipitating their rise to power in the north and takeover of the Kingdom of Brynaich (later Anglicized to Bernicia). Bernicia became Northumbria by conquering the Angles of Deira in AD 604. By the mid 7th century, it had also absorbed Rheged, peacefully by means of dynastic intermarriage.
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Bronze shield discovered in a bog near Beith, in Ayrshire, Scotland; 13th or 12th century B.C. 🏴
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Gold pendants from a necklace, found in an underwater cave near Han-Sur-Lesse, in Walloonia, Belgium; 10th century B.C. 🇧🇪 The underwater caves and passages in the Lesse river were known to the Celts who inhabited the region. They appear to have viewed them as the abodes of deities and to have left votive offerings for them there, as significant amounts of treasure have been discovered in the caves.
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https://www.heritagedaily.com/2024/08/stonehenge-altar-stone-hails-from-scotland/153227
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Digital facial reconstruction of medieval English knight who was killed in combat against Scots. 🏴🏴
The man’s skeleton was one of many unearthed at Stirling castle in Scotland. The skeleton had signs of multiple injuries sustained throughout the man’s lifetime, including ankle injuries that probably indicated he took part in jousting and mounted combat throughout his life. He has been identified as Sir John de Stricheley, a Buckinghamshire knight who was killed in the year 1341 by Scottish archers who were besieging the castle. Stirling castle had been occupied by an English garrison during the Second War of Scottish Independence (1332-1357).
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An Irish chieftain prepares to mount his horse. 🇮🇪 Woodcut illustration by John Derricke, in his book The Image of Irelande, with a Discoverie of Woodkarne; year 1581.
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Digital reconstruction of the Celtiberian hill-fort of Castil de Griegos, in Guadalajara province, Spain. 🇪🇸
Castil de Griegos was first built during the 7th century B.C; and inhabited continuously until the early 2nd century B.C. In the 3rd century B.C. the site was expanded significantly and more robustly fortified, likely reflecting the increase in warfare during the 2nd Punic War (218-211 B.C.) between Carthage and Rome. Huge ditches were carved out of the rock, and new walls built with the extracted stone. A secondary fort was also built directly adjacent to the older one, the two connected to one another by a small foot bridge. Some years later, the settlement was destroyed by fire, probably during the military campaigns (182-179 B.C.) of the Roman governor of Hispania Citerior, Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus.
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Gaelic chat is back. 🏴🌾 Anyone interested feel free to join to learn and practice your Gaelic. Lessons will be posted and pinned within the chat. As much as is possible, we encourage communicating in Gaelic only, so as to make the experience immersive.
/channel/+dOxr5uMLcYs5YzZh
“The Bard”; 1784 engraving by English artist John Hall (1739-1797). 🏴🏴
The scene was inspired by a 1757 poem by Thomas Grey, titled “The Bard. A Pindaric Ode”. The poem depicts a fictitious event during the 1282-3 conquest of Wales by king Edward I of England. As Edward’s army marches into Gwynedd, it is confronted by a Welsh minstrel, who curses the English king from across the river Conwy, supposedly predicting the fall of the Plantagenet dynasty and rise of the part Welsh Tudor dynasty.
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Celtiberians in combat during the 2nd Punic War (218 to 211 B.C.); art by Angus McBride. 🇪🇸
Originally allies of Carthage, the Celtiberians switched sides and supported Rome almost immediately after the Romans crushed the Punic navy at the Battle of the Ebro River, fought in the spring of 217 B.C. Livy claims that they didn’t even wait to ratify a treaty with the Romans or join forces with them, invading Carthaginian territory on their own, taking three towns by assault, and defeating the Punic general Hasdrubal Barca in two pitched battles. Aside from using them to fight Carthage in Iberia, Appian told of how the Romans sent some of them to southern Italy in 215 B.C; where they were able to persuade their kin fighting in Hannibal Barca’s cavalry to go over to the Roman side. The previous year, the same Celtiberian horsemen had helped Hannibal destroy a massive Roman army at the Battle of Cannae, (fought on the 2nd of August), by surrendering to the Romans, then attacking their cavalry in the rear with concealed daggers as the battle unfolded. The Celtiberians proved indispensable to the Romans up until 211 B.C. At that point, a large contingent of them deserted the armies of generals Publius and Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio in Spain after being bribed by the Carthaginian general Hasdrubal Gisco. This desertion led to the disastrous Roman defeats at the Battles of Ilorca and Castulo, in which the aforementioned Scipio brothers were killed.
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