''Fled Bricrenn'' (

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 ...

Bricriu Bricriu (also Briccriu, Bricne) is a hospitaller (''briugu''), troublemaker and poet in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. ''Fled Bricrenn'' The story of ''Fled Bricrenn'' ("The Feast of Bricriu") tells how he once held a lavish feast for Conch ...

's Feast") is a story from the

Ulster Cycle The Ulster Cycle (), formerly known as the Red Branch Cycle, is a body of medieval Irish heroic legends and sagas of the Ulaid. It is set far in the past, in what is now eastern Ulster and northern Leinster, particularly counties Armagh, Do ...

Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths indigenous to the island of Ireland. It was originally Oral tradition, passed down orally in the Prehistoric Ireland, prehistoric era. In the History of Ireland (795–1169), early medieval era, myths were ...

. Bricriu, an inveterate troublemaker, invites the nobles of the

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

to a feast at his new ''

bruiden In Gaelic Ireland, a ''bruiden'' () was a building offering shelter, drink and food, often translated as "hostel", "banqueting hall" or "inn." A description in The Tale of Mac Da Thó's Pig (c. AD 800) describes one ''bruiden'': "There were seven ...

'' (hostel, banquet hall) at Dún Rudraige (

Dundrum, County Down Dundrum () is a village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is beside Dundrum Bay, about 4 miles outside Newcastle on the A2 road. The village is best known for its ruined Norman castle. It had a population of 1,555 people at th ...

), where he incites three heroes, Cúchulainn,

Conall Cernach Conall Cernach (modern spelling: Conall Cearnach) is a hero of the Ulaid in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. He had a crooked neck and is said to have always slept with the head of a Connachtman under his knee. His epithet is normally transl ...

, and

Lóegaire Búadach In the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology, Lóegaire Búadach (Lóegaire the Victorious) is a hapless Ulaid, Ulster warrior who mainly functions as comic relief. When he, Cúchulainn and Conall Cernach contend for the champion's portion at Briccriu' ...

, to compete for the " champion's portion" of the feast. The three heroes perform several feats, and travel to

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

to be judged by

Ailill Ailill (Ailell, Oilioll) is a male name in Old Irish. It is a prominent name in Irish mythology, as for Ailill mac Máta, King of Connacht and husband of Queen Medb, on whom Shakespeare based the Fairy Queen Mab. Ailill was a popular given name in ...

and

Medb Medb (), later spelled Meadhbh (), Méabh(a) () and Méibh (), and often anglicised as Maeve ( ), is queen of Connacht in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. Her husband in the core stories of the cycle is Ailill mac Máta, although she had ...

, and to

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

to be judged by

Cú Roí Cú Roí mac Dáire (Cú Ruí, Cú Raoi) is a king of Munster in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. He is usually portrayed as a warrior with superhuman abilities and a master of disguise possessed of magical powers. His name probably means "ho ...

; on each occasion, Cúchulainn is proclaimed champion, but the other two refuse to accept. Eventually, back at

Emain Macha Navan Fort ( ; ) is an ancient ceremonial monument near Armagh, Northern Ireland. According to tradition it was one of the great royal sites of pre-Christian Gaelic Ireland and the capital of the Ulaidh. It is a large circular hilltop enclos ...

, the three heroes are each challenged by a giant churl to cut off his head, on the condition that they allow him to cut off their heads in return. First Lóegaire, then Conall, takes up the challenge and cuts off the churl's head, only for him to pick it up and leave, but when the churl returns the following night they are nowhere to be seen. Only Cúchulainn lives up to his side of the bargain. The churl spares his life, reveals himself to be Cú Roí in disguise, and announces that Cúchulainn's bravery and honour make him an undisputed champion. The story dates from the 8th century and is found in several manuscripts, including the ''

Lebor na hUidre (, LU) or the Book of the Dun Cow (MS 23 E 25) is an Irish vellum manuscript dating to the 12th century. It is the oldest extant manuscript in Irish. It is held in the Royal Irish Academy and is badly damaged: only 67 leaves remain and many ...

'' (c. 1106). The motif of warriors competing for the champion's portion is found in another Ulster Cycle tale, '' Scéla Mucce Maic Dathó'' ("The Tale of Mac Dathó's Pig"), and is reminiscent of descriptions of customs of the

Celts The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...

of continental Europe as recorded by classical authors. The beheading challenge also has classical parallels, and also appears in later medieval literary works like ''

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' is a late 14th-century chivalric romance in Middle English alliterative verse. The author is unknown; the title was given centuries later. It is one of the best-known Arthurian stories, with its plot comb ...

''. ''Fled Bricrenn'' is not to be confused with ''Fled Bricrenn ocus Loinges mac nDuíl Dermait'' ("Bricriu's Feast, and the Exile of the sons of Dóel Dermait"), another Ulster Cycle tale which features Bricriu and a prestigious portion of food (''airigid'').

Manuscript sources

*Ed. XL: pp. 69–76 (Edinburgh, National Library of Scotland). 'Cennach ind Ruanada' only. *Egerton 93: f. 20R-25V (London, British Library). Fragment. *MS 1336 (H 3.17): pp. 683–710 (Dublin, Trinity College Library). Fragment. *MS 1337 (H 3.18): p. 607 (Dublin, Trinity College Library). Glossed extracts. *Codex Vossianus: f 3R-9V (Leiden). Fragments
CELT
*MS 23 E 25 or Lebor na hUidre (LU): p. 99b–112b +H (Dublin, RIA).

Kathleen Mulchrone Kathleen "Kate" Mulchrone (; 22 November 1895 – 13 June 1973) was an Irish Celtic scholar. Biography Kathleen Mulchrone was born in Kilbeggan, County Westmeath on 22 November 1895. She was the youngest of three daughters of RIC sergeant, Pat ...

, et al. ''Catalogue of Irish Manuscripts in the Royal Irish Academy''. Dublin, 1926–70. 3367–79. End missing. Contains interpolations by H.

References

{{reflist

'' 14 (1893): 450–91. Based on Ed. XL. * Henderson, George (ed. and tr.). ''Fled Bricrend.'' Irish Texts Society 2. London and Dublin, 1899. Based on LU 99b1-112b48, Ed. XL and variants. Available onlin
hereAudiobook at Internet Archive
*Best, R.I. and Osborn Bergin (eds.), ''Lebor na hUidre. Book of the Dun Cow''. Dublin, 1929. 50–3. Diplomatic edition of the Lebor na hUidre
Available from CELT
*Henderson, George (tr.), "Bricriu's Feast". In ''Ancient Irish tales'', ed. T.P. Cross and C.H. Slover. New York, 1936. 254–80. *Gantz, Jeffrey (tr.). ''Early Irish Myths and Sagas''. New York, 1981. 219–55. Based on the Leiden and Edinburgh versions. *Koch, John T. and Henderson, George (trs.). In ''The Celtic Heroic Age'', ed. John T. Koch and John Carey. 3d ed. Andover, 2000. 76–105. Updated version of Henderson's translation.

Secondary literature

*Martin, B.K. "The Medieval Irish Stories about Bricriu's Feast and Mac Dátho's Pig". ''Parergon: Bulletin of the Australian and New Zealand Association for Medieval and Renaissance Studies'' 10.1 (1992): 71–93. *Ó Riain, Padraig (ed). ''Fled Bricrenn: Reassessments''. London, 2000. Contains the following essays: Maier, Bernhard, "Comparing ''Fled Bricrenn'' with Classical Descriptions of Continental Celts: Parallels, Problems and Pitfalls" (1–14); Koch, John T., "''Fled Bricrenns Significance within the Broader Celtic Context" (15–39); Jacobs, Nicolas, "''Fled Bricrenn'' and ''Sir Gawain and the Green Knight''" (40–55); Hellmuth, Petra S., "The Role of Cu Roi in ''Fled Bricrenn''" (56–69); Mac Cana, Proinsias, "Notes on Structure and Syntax in ''Fled Bricrenn''" (70–92). Early Irish literature Texts in Irish Irish-language literature Medieval literature Narratives of the Ulster Cycle

Manuscript sources

References

Further reading

Editions and translations

Secondary literature