Érimón, (modern spelling: Éiremhón), commonly Anglicised as Heremon, son of

Míl Espáine In Irish origin myths, Míl Espáine or Míl Espáne (later Latinized as Milesius; also Miled/Miledh) is the mythical ancestor of the final inhabitants of Ireland, the "sons of Míl" or Milesians, who represent the vast majority of the Irish Ga ...

(and great-grandson of Breoghan, king of Celtic Galicia), according to medieval Irish legends and historical traditions, was one of the chieftains who took part in the Milesian invasion of Ireland, which conquered the island from the

Tuatha Dé Danann The Tuath(a) Dé Danann (, meaning "the folk of the goddess Danu (Irish goddess), Danu"), also known by the earlier name Tuath Dé ("tribe of the gods"), are a supernatural race in Irish mythology. Many of them are thought to represent deity, ...

, and one of the first Milesian High Kings.

Background

Before coming to Ireland, he and his older brother

Éber Donn In Irish mythology, Éber Donn ("Eber the brown" or "the noble") is the eldest son of Míl Espáine, the mythical ancestor of the Irish people. Unlike his brothers, Eremon, Éber Finn and Amergin Glúingel, Amergin, Éber Donn was unable to land i ...

were joint rulers of

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. His great-uncle Íth made a peaceful expedition to Ireland, which he had seen from the top of a tower built by his father Breogan, but was killed by the three kings of the Tuatha Dé Danann,

Mac Cuill In Irish mythology, Mac Cuill of the Tuatha Dé Danann, was a son of Cermait, son of the Dagda. Mac Cuill's given name was Éthur and he was named Mac Cuill after his god, Coll, the hazel. His wife was Banba. Description He and his brothers Mac ...

Mac Cecht In Irish mythology, Mac Cecht, now spelled Mac Ceacht (), of the Tuatha Dé Danann was a son of Cermait, son of the Dagda. Mac Cecht's given name was Téthur and he was named Mac Cecht after his god, Cecht, the ploughshare. His wife was Fodla, ...

and

Mac Gréine In Irish mythology, Mac Gréine of the Tuatha Dé Danann was a son of Cermait, son of the Dagda. Mac Gréine's given name was Céthur. Mac Gréine is Irish for "Son of the Sun". His wife was Ériu. Description He and his brothers Mac Cuill and M ...

, and in revenge the Milesians invaded in force, with Érimón and Éber Donn in command. They defeated the Tuatha Dé Danann in the Battle of

Tailtiu Tailtiu or Tailltiu (; modern spelling: Tailte) (also known as Talti) is the name of a presumed goddess from Irish mythology. The goddess's name is linked to Teltown (< OI ''Óenach Tailten'') in Co. Meath, site of the

< ...

. Éber Donn had been killed, and the High Kingship was divided between Érimón in the north and his younger brother

Éber Finn Éber Finn (modern spelling: Éibhear Fionn), son of Míl Espáine, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland and one of the founders of the Milesian lineage, to which medieval genealogists traced al ...

in the south.

High Kingship of Ireland

A year after the Battle of Tailtiu, Éber Finn became unhappy with his half, fought a battle with his brother at Airgetros, lost and was killed. Érimón became sole ruler of Ireland and built his capital at Ráth Oinn (later site of

Rathdown Castle Rathdown Castle is a ruined castle and ancient settlement site located in County Wicklow, Ireland. Location Rathdown Castle was located in a deep ravine immediately northeast of Kindlestown Castle and north of Greystones village. In the field ...

, on the east coast near modern

Greystones Greystones () is a coastal town and seaside resort in County Wicklow, Ireland. It lies on Ireland's east coast, south of Bray, County Wicklow, Bray and south of Dublin city centre and has a population of 18,140 (2016). The town is bordered ...

). He appointed kings of the four provinces. He gave

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

to Crimthann Sciathbél of the

Fir Domnann The Fir Domnann were a people named in Irish legendary history. The name ''Fir Domnann'' is based on the root ''dumno''-, which means both ‘deep’ and ‘the world’. The suffix -''on''- often occurs in Gaulish and British divine names. The t ...

;

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...

to the four sons of Eber Finn,

Ér, Orba, Ferón and Fergna Ér, Orba, Ferón and Fergna, sons of Éber Finn, were, according to medieval Irish legends and historical traditions, joint High Kings of Ireland for half a year after they killed their cousins Luigne and Laigne, sons of Érimón, in the Battle ...

;

Connacht Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Delbhn ...

to Ún and Étan, sons of Uicce; and

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

to Eber mac Ír. During this time the Cruithne settled in Ireland. He ruled for fourteen, fifteen or seventeen further years, after which he died at Airgetros, and was succeeded by his sons Muimne, Luigne and Laigne, ruling jointly.

Geoffrey Keating Geoffrey Keating ( ga, Seathrún Céitinn; c. 1569 – c. 1644) was a 17th-century historian. He was born in County Tipperary, Ireland, and is buried in Tubrid Graveyard in the parish of Ballylooby-Duhill. He became an Irish Catholic priest and a ...

dates his reign from 1287 to 1272 BC, the ''

Annals of the Four Masters The ''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland'' ( ga, Annála Ríoghachta Éireann) or the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' (''Annála na gCeithre Máistrí'') are chronicles of medieval Irish history. The entries span from the Deluge, dated as 2,24 ...

'' from 1700 to 1684 BC. In the tradition of comparative mythologist Georges Dumézil, the name of 'Érimón' is ostensibly related to the name of a Gaulish god 'Ario-manus', who is only known of from 1st-century BC Roman reports in Austria. This assumption derives from now-defunct 18th-century theories related to the etymology of 'Éire'.

Personal life

Érimón had two wives, Odba, mother of Muimne, Luigne and Laigne, whom he left behind in Spain, and Tea, mother of

Íriel Fáid Irial Fáid ("the prophet"), the youngest son of Érimón by his wife Tea, according to medieval Irish legends and historical traditions, became High King of Ireland after killing Ér, Orba, Ferón and Fergna, sons of Éber Finn, in the Battle of ...

, who accompanied him to Ireland, and died there. Tea was a daughter of

Lugaid Lugaid (Lughaid, Lughaidh, Lughaí, with all equivalents originally attested as Ogham Lugodeccus) is a popular medieval Irish name, thought to be derived from the god Lug. It is borne by a number of figures from Irish history and mythology, incl ...

and gave her name to Tara, where she was buried – the ''

Lebor Gabála Érenn ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of the Taking of Ireland"), known in English as ''The Book of Invasions'', is a collection of poems and prose narratives in the Irish language intended to be a history of Ireland and the Irish fro ...

'' explains its

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writt ...

name ''Temair'' as "''Tea mur''", "Tea's Wall". Through his son, Íriel Fáid, Érimón was the progenitor of the Heremonians and provided many High Kings of Ireland. Kinship groups of Irish Gaels which are classified as Heremonians were most powerful in

and parts of

and include the Connachta,

Uí Néill The Uí Néill (Irish pronunciation: ; meaning "descendants of Niall") are Irish dynasties who claim descent from Niall Noígíallach (Niall of the Nine Hostages), a historical King of Tara who died c. 405. They are generally divided into the ...

, Clan Colla, Uí Maine,

Laighin The Laigin, modern spelling Laighin (), were a Gaelic population group of early Ireland. They gave their name to the Kingdom of Leinster, which in the medieval era was known in Irish as ''Cóiced Laigen'', meaning "Fifth/province of the Leinster ...

Dalcassians The Dalcassians ( ga, Dál gCais ) are a Gaelic Irish clan, generally accepted by contemporary scholarship as being a branch of the Déisi Muman, that became very powerful in Ireland during the 10th century. Their genealogies claimed descent f ...

and the

Érainn The Iverni (, ') were a people of early Ireland first mentioned in Ptolemy's 2nd century ''Geography'' as living in the extreme south-west of the island. He also locates a "city" called Ivernis (, ') in their territory, and observes that this se ...

.The Stem of the Irish Nation - Irish Pedigrees
/ref> The Red Lion of Heremon features in

Irish heraldry Irish heraldry is the forms of heraldry, such as Coat of arms, coats of arms, in Ireland. Since 1 April 1943 it is regulated in the Republic of Ireland by the Genealogical Office, Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland and in Northern Ireland by No ...

and

Scottish heraldry Heraldry in Scotland, while broadly similar to that practised in England and elsewhere in western Europe, has its own distinctive features. Its heraldic executive is separate from that of the rest of the United Kingdom. Executive The Scottish he ...

as a device in the coat of arms of many of Heremon's claimed descendants, including: File:O'Neill Coat of arms.svg, O'Neill File:O'Melaghlin-MacLaughlin.png, O'Melaghlin File:MacGeoghegan.png, MacGeoghegan File:Arms of Valerio Magawly-Cerati.svg, Magawly File:Fox.png, O'Kearney File:McCaughey.png, McCaughey File:Kavanagh_Coat_of_arms.svg, Kavanagh File:Ó Donnagáin.png, Donegan File:Ó Dubhuidhir.png, O'Dwyer File:Blason fr Ledru des Essarts.svg, MacMahon File:Royal Arms of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg, Dunkeld File:Macduff arms.svg, MacDuff

Background

High Kingship of Ireland

Personal life

References

See also