Myths and Legends of the Celtic Race - Knowledge Rush

CHAPTER I: THE CELTS IN ANCIENT HISTORY 35“ ‘Alas,’ he said, ‘for the iniquitous contest that ye havewaged against me; seeing that it is Ireland's good that I pursue,and to preserve her discipline and royal right; but 'tis Ireland'sunpeace and murderousness that ye endeavour after.’ ”But Ruadan said, “Desolate be Tara for ever and ever”; andthe popular awe of the ecclesiastical malediction prevailed. Thecriminal was surrendered, Tara was abandoned, and, except fora brief space when a strong usurper, Brian Boru, fought his wayto power, Ireland knew no effective secular government till itwas imposed upon her by a conqueror. The last words of thehistorical tract from which we quote are Dermot's cry of despair:“Woe to him that with the clergy of the churches battlejoins.”This remarkable incident has been described at some lengthbecause it is typical of a factor whose profound influence inmoulding the history of the Celtic peoples we can trace througha succession of critical events from the time of Julius Caesar tothe present day. How and whence it arose we shall consider later;here it is enough to call attention to it. It is a factor which forbadethe national development of the Celts, in the sense in which wecan speak of that of the classical or the Teutonic peoples.What Europe Owes to the CeltYet to suppose that on this account the Celt was not a force ofany real consequence in Europe would be altogether a mistake.His contribution to the culture of the Western world was avery notable one. For some four centuries—about A.D. 500 to900—Ireland was the refuge of learning and the source of literary [50]and philosophic culture for half Europe. The verse-forms ofCeltic poetry have probably played the main part in determiningthe structure of all modern verse. The myths and legends of thevellum manuscript found in Lismore Castle in 1814, and translated by S.H.O'Grady in his “Silva Gadelica.” The narrative is attributed to an officer ofDermot's court.