The Kings of Pagan Ireland
Above: The Kings
The brothers Eber-Finn and Eremon had no sooner settled down in their new kingdoms than they quarrelled and fought a battle (A.M. 3501), in which Eber was defeated and slain, and Eremon became sole king. By far the greater number of the Irish Pagan kings after Eremon fell in battle or by assassination : a few only of the most distinguished need be noticed here.
Tighernmas [Teernmas], who began Ins reign A.M. 3581, was tlie first of the Irish kings to work gold. He distinguished the various classes of his people by the numbers of hues in their garments.
This king, we are told, was miraculously de- stroyed with a multitude of his people, while they were worshipping the great, national idol Crom Cruach on the plain of Moy Slecht in Brefney, on the eve of the pagan festival of Samin (1st November). The mighty king Ollamh Fodia [Oilav Fola]-A.M. 3922-established the Fes or meeting of Tara; the proceedings of which were entered in the great national record called the Psalter of Tara. And he made laws for the whole country.
About 300 years before the Christian era, Macha of the Golden Hair, the queen of Cimbaeth [Kimbay] king of Ulster, built the palace of Emam or Emama, which for more than 600 years continued to be the residence of the Ulster kings. Here in after ages, the- Red Branch Knights were trained in military accom- plishments and deeds of arms. The remains of this palace are still to be seen two miles west of Armagh : it is now called Navan Fort.-Navan being the pronun- ciation of the old Irish name N-Emain.
looa. Achy Feidlech [Fealagh], who ascended the throne a little before the Christian era, built the palace of Croghan tor his daughter, the celebrated Medb [Maive] queen of Connaught, where the kings of the province afterwards resided. This old fort is in the north of Roscommon, and still retains the original name. The king who reigned at the time of the Incarnation was Conary I, or Conary the Great. In his time occurred the seven years’ war between Maive queen of Con- naught and Conor Mac Nessa king of Ulster (33).
Some time in the first century of the Christian era the Attacottic or plebeian races-i.e., the Firbolgs, Dedannans, and Fomorians whom the Milesians had enslaved, rose up in rebellion, wrested the sovereign from their masters, and almost exterminated the Milesian princes and nobles; after which they chose Carl Kinncat for their king. But the Milesian Monarchy was after some time restored in the person of Tuathal [Toohal] the Legitimate, who ascended the the throne early in the second century.