Bresal Bó-Díbad, son of Rudraige, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. He took power after killing his predecessor, Finnat Már, and ruled for eleven years, during which there was a plague on cattle (

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic (, Ogham, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ; ; or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic languages, Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive written texts. It was used from 600 to 900. The ...

''bó díbad'', "extinction of cows") which left only one bull and one heifer alive. A story about the

passage tomb Passage, The Passage or Le Passage may refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * Passage (2008 film), ''Passage'' (2008 film), a documentary about Arctic explorers * Passage (2009 film), ''Passage'' (2009 film), a short movie about three sisters * ...

Dowth Dowth () is the site of Neolithic passage tombs near the River Boyne in County Meath, Ireland. It is one of the three main tombs of the ''Brú na Bóinne'' World Heritage Site, along with Newgrange and Knowth. Its features align it with the ot ...

(''Dubhadh''), in the ''

Dindsenchas ''Dindsenchas'' or ''Dindshenchas'' (modern spellings: ''Dinnseanchas'' or ''Dinnsheanchas'' or ''Dınnṡeanċas''), meaning "lore of places" (the modern Irish word ''dinnseanchas'' means "topography"), is a class of onomastic text in early Irish ...

'' (lore of places), says that Bresal compelled the men of Ireland to build a tower to heaven within a day. His sister cast a spell, making the sun stand still so that one day lasted indefinitely. However, Bresal committed incest with his sister, which broke the spell. The sun set and the builders left, hence the name ''Dubhadh'' ('darkening'). This tale has been linked with

solstice A solstice is the time when the Sun reaches its most northerly or southerly sun path, excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around 20–22 June and 20–22 December. In many countries ...

alignments at

Brú na Bóinne (, "mansion or palace of the Boyne"), also called the Boyne Valley tombs, is an ancient monument complex and ritual landscape in County Meath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, located in a bend of the River Boyne. It is one of the world's most im ...

.Hensey, Robert. Re-discovering the winter solstice alignment at Newgrange, in ''The Oxford Handbook of Light in Archaeology''. Oxford University Press, 2017. pp.11-13 It has also been linked with recent DNA analysis, which found that a man buried at nearby

Newgrange Newgrange () is a prehistoric monument in County Meath in Ireland, placed on a rise overlooking the River Boyne, west of the town of Drogheda. It is an exceptionally grand passage tomb built during the Neolithic Period, around 3100 BC, makin ...

had parents who were most likely siblings. This could mean that knowledge of the event survived for thousands of years before being recorded as a myth in the Middle Ages. He was killed by Finnat's son

Lugaid Luaigne Lugaid Luaigne, son of Finnat Már, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. He came to power after killing his predecessor, and his father's killer, Bresal Bó-Díbad, and ruled for five or fift ...

. The ''

Lebor Gabála Érenn ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of Ireland's Taking"; Modern Irish spelling: ''Leabhar Gabhála Éireann'', known in English as ''The Book of Invasions'') is a collection of poems and prose narratives in the Irish language inten ...

'' synchronises his reign with that of

Ptolemy X Alexander I Ptolemy X Alexander I (, ''Ptolemaĩos Aléxandros'') was the Ptolemaic king of Cyprus from 114 BC until 107 BC and of Egypt from 107 BC until his death in 88 BC. He ruled in co-regency with his mother Cleopatra III as Ptolemy Philometor Soter ...

(110–88 BC) in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. The chronology of

Geoffrey Keating Geoffrey Keating (; – ) was an Irish historian. He was born in County Tipperary, Ireland, and is buried in Tubrid Graveyard in the parish of Ballylooby-Duhill. He became a Catholic priest and a poet. Biography It was generally believed unt ...

's ''Foras Feasa ar Éirinn'' dates his reign to 151–140 BC, that of the ''

Annals of the Four Masters The ''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland'' () or the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' () are chronicles of Middle Ages, medieval Irish history. The entries span from the Genesis flood narrative, Deluge, dated as 2,242 Anno Mundi, years after crea ...

'' to 210–199 BC.''

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References

Legendary High Kings of Ireland 2nd-century BC legendary monarchs Irish regicides Usurpers 2nd-century BC murdered monarchs {{Ireland-royal-stub