Conaire Mór (the great), son of Eterscél, was, according to mediaeval Irish legend and historical tradition, a

High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ) 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 was later sometimes assigned anachronously or to leg ...

sometime during the 1st century BC or 1st century AD. His mother was Mess Búachalla, who was either the daughter of Eochu Feidlech and Étaín, or of Eochu Airem and his daughter by Étaín. In the

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 ...

saga '' Togail Bruidne Dá Derga'' he is conceived when his mother is visited by Nemglan who flies in her skylight in the form of a bird, and is brought up as Eterscél's son. According to 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 ...

'', he took power after killing his predecessor, and his father's killer, Nuadu Necht. In ''Togail Bruidne Dá Derga'' he succeeds Eterscél directly. When Eterscél dies, a bull-feast is held. A bull is killed, a man eats his fill of its meat and drinks its broth, and sleeps as incantations are chanted over him. Whoever this man sees in his sleep will be the new king. He sees a naked man coming along the road to Tara with a stone in his sling. The young Conaire, meanwhile, is hunting birds in his chariot. He chases them into the sea, where they become armed men, announce themselves as Conaire's father's bird troop, and inform him that it is forbidden for him to hunt birds. The leader of the bird troop is called Nemglan and he tells Conaire to go naked to Tara, where he will be made king, and places several '' geasa'' (taboos) on his reign. Among other things, he may not be preceded by three red men into the house of a red man. As he approaches Tara he is met by three kings carrying clothes for him, and when he arrives he is made king. His reign is long and mostly peaceful. His end is told in the Old Irish epic '' Togail Bruidne Dá Derga'', "The Destruction of Da Derga's Hostel", in which events conspire to make him break his '' geasa'' one by one. After he has already broken several of them, he travels south along the coast of Ireland, he is advised to stay the night at Da Derga's Hostel, but as he approaches it, he sees three men dressed in red riding red horses arriving before him. "Da Derga" means "Red God". He realises that three red men have preceded him into the house of a red man, and another of his ''geasa'' has been broken. His three foster-brothers, the three sons of Dond Désa, whom Conaire had exiled to Alba (

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

) for their crimes, had made alliance with the king of the Britons, Ingcél Cáech, and they were marauding across Ireland with a large band of followers. They attack Da Derga's Hostel. Three times they attempt to burn it down, and three times the fire is put out. Conaire, protected by his champion Mac Cécht and the Ulster hero Conall Cernach, kills six hundred before he reaches his weapons, a further six hundred with his weapons. He asks for a drink, but all the water has been used to put out the fires. Mac Cécht travels across Ireland with Conaire's cup, but none of the rivers will give him water. He returns with a cup of water just in time to see two men cutting Conaire's head off. He kills both of them. Conaire's severed head drinks the water and recites a poem praising Mac Cécht. The battle rages for three more days. Mac Cécht is killed, but Conall Cernach escapes. He had ruled for thirty or seventy years, depending on the source consulted. The ''

'' synchronises his reign with that of the Roman emperor

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

(27 BC – AD 14), and after the birth of

Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...

, and makes him contemporary with legendary provincial kings

Conchobar mac Nessa Conchobar mac Nessa (son of Ness) is the king of Ulster in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. He rules from Emain Macha (Navan Fort, near Armagh). He is usually said to be the son of the High King Fachtna Fáthach, although in some stories ...

, Cairbre Nia Fer and Ailill mac Máta. The chronology of Geoffrey Keating's ''

Foras Feasa ar Éirinn ''Foras Feasa ar Éirinn'' – literally 'Foundation of Knowledge on Ireland', but most often known in English as 'The History of Ireland' – is a narrative history of Ireland by Geoffrey Keating, written in Irish and completed .Bernadette Cun ...

'' dates his reign to 63–33 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 110–40 BC.''

'
M5090-5160
/ref> A descendant of Íar mac Dedad, Conaire belonged to the legendary Clanna Dedad, the legendary royal family of 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 ...

. His descendants in Ireland and

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

were known as the Síl Conairi. The last Gaelic king of Scotland from the line from Conaire Mór was Alexander III of Scotland.

References

Further reading

Primary sources