Túathal Techtmar (; 'the legitimate'), son of

Fíachu Finnolach Fiacha Finnolach, son of Feradach Finnfechtnach, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. He took power after killing his predecessor, Fíatach Finn. He ruled for fifteen, seventeen, or twenty-se ...

, was a

High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ga, Ardrí na hÉireann ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and later sometimes assigned ana ...

, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition. He is said to be the ancestor of the

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 ...

and

Connachta The Connachta are a group of medieval Irish dynasties who claimed descent from the legendary High King Conn Cétchathach (Conn of the Hundred Battles). The modern western province of Connacht (Irish ''Cúige Chonnacht'', province, literally "f ...

dynasties through his grandson

Conn of the Hundred Battles Conn Cétchathach (; "of the Hundred Battles"), son of Fedlimid Rechtmar, was a semi-legendary High King of Ireland and the ancestor of the Connachta, and, through his descendant Niall Noígiallach, the Uí Néill dynasties, which dominated Irela ...

. The name may also have originally referred to an eponymous deity, possibly even a local version of the

Gaulish Gaulish was an ancient Celtic languages, Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium ...

Toutatis Toutatis or Teutates is a Celtic god who was worshipped primarily in ancient Gaul and Britain. His name means "god of the tribe", and he has been widely interpreted as a tribal protector.Paul-Marie Duval (1993). ''Les dieux de la Gaule.'' Éditio ...

Legend

Túathal was the son of a former High King deposed by an uprising of "subject peoples" who returned at the head of an army to reclaim his father's throne. The oldest source for Túathal's story, a 9th-century poem by Mael Mura of Othain, says that his father, Fíacha Finnolach, was overthrown by the four provincial kings,

Elim mac Conrach Elim, son of Conrai, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. The ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' says he overthrew the previous High King Fíachu Finnolach in an uprising of ''aithech-tuatha'' or "subje ...

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 ...

, Sanb (son of

Cet mac Mágach Cet mac Mágach is a Connacht warrior in the Ulster Cycle of Irish Mythology. He had a rivalry with the Ulster warrior Conall Cernach. In some myths, he is said to be the brother of Conall's mother, making him Conall's uncle. At a feast at the ...

) of

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 ...

, Foirbre of

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 ...

and Eochaid Ainchenn of

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 ...

, and that it was Elim who took the High Kingship. During his rule Ireland suffered famine as God punished this rejection of legitimate kingship. Túathal, aided by the brothers Fiacha Cassán and Findmall and their 600 men, marched on Tara and defeated Elim in battle at the hill of

Achall Achall, daughter of Cairbre Nia Fer, king of Tara, and his wife Fedelm Noíchrothach, is a minor character from the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. After her brother Erc was killed by Conall Cernach, she died of grief on a hill near Tara, which ...

. He then won battles against the Ligmuini, the Gailióin, the

Fir Bolg In medieval Irish myth, the Fir Bolg (also spelt Firbolg and Fir Bholg) are the fourth group of people to settle in Ireland. They are descended from the Muintir Nemid, an earlier group who abandoned Ireland and went to different parts of Europe. ...

, 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 tr ...

, the

Ulaid Ulaid (Old Irish, ) or Ulaidh (Modern Irish, ) was a Gaelic over-kingdom in north-eastern Ireland during the Middle Ages made up of a confederation of dynastic groups. Alternative names include Ulidia, which is the Latin form of Ulaid, and in ...

, the Muma, the

Fir Ól nÉcmacht Fir Ol nEchmacht was the name of a group or race of people living in pre-historic Ireland. The name may be translated as "men (') of the race/people (', possibly '?) of '" (' being the given name of the people). Some scholars believe they are conne ...

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 ...

, and assembled the Irish nobility at Tara to make them swear allegiance to him and his descendants.R. B. Warner, "Tuathal Techtmar: A Myth or Ancient Literary Evidence for a Roman Invasion?", ''Emania'' 13, 1995, pp. 23–32 Later versions of the story suppress the involvement of the provincial nobility in the revolt, making the "subject peoples" the peasants of Ireland. 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 ...

'' adds the detail of Túathal's exile. His mother,

Eithne Imgel Eithne is a female personal name of Irish origin, meaning "kernel" or "grain". Other spellings and earlier forms include Ethnea, Ethlend, Ethnen, Ethlenn, Ethnenn, Eithene, Ethne, Aithne, Enya, Ena, Edna, Etney, Eithnenn, Eithlenn, Eithna, Ethni, ...

, daughter of the king of

Alba ''Alba'' ( , ) is the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland. It is also, in English language historiography, used to refer to the polity of Picts and Scottish people, Scots united in the ninth century as the Kingdom of Alba, until it developed i ...

(originally meaning

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

, later

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

), was pregnant when Fíachu was overthrown, and fled to her homeland where she gave birth to Túathal. Twenty years later Túathal and his mother returned to Ireland, joined up with Fiacha Cassán and Findmall, and marched on Tara to take the kingship. 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 ...

'' features a similar revolt a few generations earlier, led by

Cairbre Cinnchait Cairbre Cinnchait or Caitchenn ("cat-head" or "hard head") was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. There is considerable differences in the sources over his ancestry and his place in the traditio ...

, against the High King

Crimthann Nia Náir Crimthann Nia Náir (nephew of Nár), son of Lugaid Riab nDerg, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. Lugaid is said to have fathered him on his own mother, Clothru, daughter of Eochu Feidlech. C ...

. On this occasion Crimthann's son

Feradach Finnfechtnach Feradach Finnfechtnach (modern spelling: Fearadhach Fionnfeachtnach - "fair-blessed"), son of Crimthann Nia Náir, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. There is some disagreement in the sources ...

is the future king who escaped in his mother's womb, although the Annals claim he returned to reclaim his throne only five years later. The story repeats itself a few generations later with Elim's revolt against Fíachu, and the exile and return of Túathal.

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 ...

harmonises the two revolts into one. He has Crimthann hand the throne directly to his son, Feradach, and makes Cairbre Cinnchait, whose ancestry he traces to the

, the leader of the revolt that overthrew Fíachu, killing him at a feast. The pregnant Eithne flees as in the other sources. Cairbre rules for five years, dies of plague and is succeeded by Elim. After Elim had ruled for twenty years, the 20- or 25-year-old Túathal was prevailed upon to return. He landed with his forces at Inber Domnainn (

Malahide Malahide ( ; ) is an affluent coastal settlement in Fingal, County Dublin, Ireland, situated north of Dublin city. It has a village centre surrounded by suburban housing estates, with a population of over 17,000. Malahide Castle dates from th ...

Bay). Joining up with Fiacha Cassán and Findmall and their marauders, he marched on Tara where he was declared king. Elim gave battle at the hill of

near Tara, but was defeated and killed. Túathal fought 25 battles against Ulster, 25 against Leinster, 25 against Connacht and 35 against Munster. The whole country subdued, he convened a conference at Tara, where he established laws and annexed territory from each of the four provinces to create the central province of ''Míde'' ( Meath) around Tara as the High King's territory. He built four fortresses in Meath:

Tlachtga Tlachtga (Modern Irish: ''Tlachta'') was a powerful druidess in Irish mythology and the red-haired daughter of the arch-druid Mug Ruith. She accompanied him on his world travels, learning his magical secrets and discovering sacred stones in Italy. ...

, where the

druids A druid was a member of the high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. Druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. Whi ...

sacrificed on the eve of

Samhain Samhain ( , , , ; gv, Sauin ) is a Gaelic festival on 1 NovemberÓ hÓgáin, Dáithí. ''Myth Legend and Romance: An Encyclopaedia of the Irish Folk Tradition''. Prentice Hall Press, 1991. p. 402. Quote: "The basic Irish division of the year ...

, on land taken from Munster;

Uisneach , alternate_name = Ushnagh (anglicisation) , image = Hill of Uisneach.jpg , alt = , caption = Information sign , map = , map_caption = , map_type = island of Ireland , map_alt = A map of Ireland , map_size = , location = ...

, where the festival of

Beltaine Beltane () is the Gaelic May Day festival. Commonly observed on the first of May, the festival falls midway between the spring equinox and summer solstice in the northern hemisphere. The festival name is synonymous with the month marking the s ...

was celebrated, on land from Connacht;

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

< ...

, where

Lughnasadh Lughnasadh or Lughnasa ( , ) is a Gaelic festival marking the beginning of the harvest season. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. In Modern Irish it is called , in gd, Lùnastal, and in gv, ...

was celebrated, on land from Ulster; and Tara, on land from Leinster. He went on to make war on Leinster, burning the stronghold of Aillen (

Dún Ailinne Dún Ailinne (; sometimes anglicized Dun Aulin) is an ancient ceremonial site on the hill of Cnoc Ailinne (Knockaulin) in County Kildare, Ireland. It is southwest of Kilcullen, near the R418 road to Athy. It is a large circular enclosure coveri ...

) and imposing the '' bórama'', a heavy tribute of cattle, on the province. One story says this was because the king of Leinster, Eochaid Ainchenn, had married Túathal's daughter Dairine, but told Túathal she had died and so was given his other daughter, Fithir. When Fithir discovered Dairine was still alive she died of shame, and when Dairine saw Fithir dead she died of grief. Túathal, or his wife Baine, is reputed to have built Ráth Mór, an

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

hillfort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

in the earthwork complex at

Clogher Clogher () is a village and civil parish in the border area of south County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Blackwater, 5.8 miles from the border crossing to County Monaghan. It stands on the townlands of Clogher Demesne and C ...

County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional Counties of Ireland, counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an admini ...

. He died in battle against

Mal mac Rochride Mal, son of Rochraide, a descendant of the legendary hero Conall Cernach, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a king of the Ulaid and later a High King of Ireland. He took the High Kingship after he killed Tuathal Tec ...

, king of

, at Mag Line ( Moylinny near

Larne Larne (, , the name of a Gaelic Ireland, Gaelic territory) is a town on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland, with a population of 18,755 at the United Kingdom census, 2011, 2011 Census. It is a major passenger and freight Roll-on/ro ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

). His son,

Fedlimid Rechtmar Fedlimid Rechtmar (; "the lawful, legitimate" or "the passionate, furious") or Rechtaid ("the judge, lawgiver"), son of Tuathal Techtmar, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. His mother was Báin ...

, later avenged him.

Historical context

Dates

The ''

'' gives the date of Túathal's exile as AD 56, his return as 76 and his death as 106.

's ''Foras Feasa ar Érinn'' broadly agrees, dating his exile to 55, his return to 80 and his death to 100. The ''

'' places him a little later, synchronising his exile with the reign of the Roman emperor

Domitian Domitian (; la, Domitianus; 24 October 51 – 18 September 96) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Flavi ...

(81–96), his return early in the reign of

Hadrian Hadrian (; la, Caesar Trâiānus Hadriānus ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. He was born in Italica (close to modern Santiponce in Spain), a Roman ''municipium'' founded by Italic settlers in Hispania B ...

(122–138) and his death in the reign of

Antoninus Pius Antoninus Pius (Latin: ''Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Pius''; 19 September 86 – 7 March 161) was Roman emperor from 138 to 161. He was the fourth of the Five Good Emperors from the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. Born into a senatoria ...

(138–161).

The first of the Goidels?

The scholar

T. F. O'Rahilly Thomas Francis O'Rahilly ( ga, Tomás Ó Rathile; 11 November 1882 – 16 November 1953)Ó Sé, Diarmuid.O'Rahilly, Thomas Francis (‘T. F.’). ''Dictionary of Irish Biography''. (ed.) James McGuire, James Quinn. Cambridge, United Kingdom: C ...

suggested that, as in many such "returned exile" stories, Túathal represented an entirely foreign invasion which established a dynasty in Ireland, whose dynastic propagandists fabricated an Irish origin for him to give him some spurious legitimacy. In fact, he proposed that Túathal's story, pushed back to the 1st or 2nd century BC, represented the invasion of the

Goidels 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 ...

, who established themselves over the earlier populations and introduced the

Q-Celtic The Celtic languages (usually , but sometimes ) are a group of related languages descended from Proto-Celtic. They form a branch of the Indo-European language family. The term "Celtic" was first used to describe this language group by Edward L ...

language that would become

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

, and that their genealogists incorporated all Irish dynasties, Goidelic or otherwise, and their ancestor deities into a pedigree stretching back over a thousand years to the fictitious

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 ...

. Professor Dáithí Ó hÓgáin reckoned his Celtic name was Teutovalos ('tribe-ruler') and he was a great leader of the northern branch of the Venii tribe, or the 'people of Condos' who overthrew the kingship of the Lagini at Tara. When the genealogies were written a few centuries later his name was noted as 'Tuathal', and the epithet ''teachtmhar'', a Celtic compound meaning 'appropriator of wealth' was added referring to his followers large-scale raids on the British coast.

Dáithí Ó hÓgáin Dáithí Ó hÓgáin (13 June 1949 – 11 December 2011), Irish folklorist, was professor of Irish folklore at University College Dublin. Born in Co. Limerick, he was a writer well-versed both in English and Irish, as well as being an academic. ...

, "''The Celts: A History''", 2002, pp. 204-205. The Venii's special designation for themselves became Gaídhil, i.e. Goidels, and their principal groups were called Connachta and Eoghanacht.

Romans in Ireland?

Taking the native dating as broadly accurate, another theory has emerged. The Roman historian

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historiography, Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his t ...

mentions that

Agricola Agricola, the Latin word for farmer, may also refer to: People Cognomen or given name :''In chronological order'' * Gnaeus Julius Agricola (40–93), Roman governor of Britannia (AD 77–85) * Sextus Calpurnius Agricola, Roman governor of the mid ...

, while governor of

Roman Britain Roman Britain was the period in classical antiquity when large parts of the island of Great Britain were under occupation by the Roman Empire. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. During that time, the territory conquered was ...

(AD 78–84), entertained an exiled Irish prince, thinking to use him as a pretext for a possible conquest of Ireland. Neither Agricola nor his successors ever conquered Ireland, but in recent years

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

has challenged the belief that the Romans never set foot on the island. Roman and Romano-British artefacts have been found primarily in Leinster, notably a fortified site on the promontory of

Drumanagh Drumanagh (Irish ''Droim Meánach'') is a headland near the village of Loughshinny, in the north east of Dublin, Ireland. It features an early 19th-century Martello tower and a large (200,000 m²) Iron Age promontory fort which has produced Rom ...

, fifteen miles north of

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, and burials on the nearby island of

Lambay Lambay Island ( ga, Reachrainn), often simply Lambay, is an island in the Irish Sea off the coast of north County Dublin, Ireland. The largest island off the east coast of Ireland, it is offshore from the headland at Portrane, and is the eas ...

, both close to where Túathal is supposed to have landed, and other sites associated with Túathal such as Tara and Clogher. However, whether this is evidence of trade, diplomacy or military activity is a matter of controversy. It is possible that the Romans may have given support to Túathal, or someone like him, to regain his throne in the interests of having a friendly neighbour who could restrain Irish raiding. The 2nd-century Roman poet

Juvenal Decimus Junius Juvenalis (), known in English as Juvenal ( ), was a Roman poet active in the late first and early second century CE. He is the author of the collection of satirical poems known as the ''Satires''. The details of Juvenal's life ...

, who may have served in Britain under Agricola, wrote that "arms had been taken beyond the shores of Ireland",

, ''

Satires Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or e ...

'' 2.159–160 and the coincidence of dates is striking.

Family tree

References

External links

Hibernia Romana: What did the Romans ever do for us?
– an article about the Drumanagh "Roman fort" controversy

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tuathal Techtmar Cycles of the Kings Legendary High Kings of Ireland People from County Westmeath