Just to let everyone know I’m going to start actually USING all that free time I have with not being a full-time employee and working on information for my Tuatha’s website. I’m going to start with some information about Emer, wife of the hero Cúchulainn. I figure it was a good thing to start using this blog for eh?
For those of you that haven’t tried to maintain a meaningful blog…it’s hard! so I’m pushing myself.
i’ll post meditations, interesting findings …hey maybe even some Gaelic! imagine that. wahoo. I’m excited.
For now here is wikipedia’s take on her.
The Ulstermen searched all over Ireland for a suitable wife for Cúchulainn, but he would have none but Emer. He visited her at Forgall’s house at Lusk, County Dublin, and wooed her by trading cryptic riddles with her. Emer would accept Cúchulainn as a husband, but only when his deeds justified it.
However, Forgall was opposed to the match. He came to Ulster in disguise and suggested that Cúchulainn should train in arms with the renowned warrior-woman Scáthach in Scotland, hoping the ordeal would be too much for him and he would be killed. Cúchulainn took up the challenge. He learned all the arts of war from Scáthach, and while he was there slept with her rival Aoife, or Aífe, leaving her pregnant.
In the meantime, Forgall offered Emer to Lugaid mac Nóis, a king of Munster. However, when he heard that Emer loved Cúchulainn, Lugaid refused her hand.
Cúchulainn returned from Scotland fully trained, but Forgall still refused to let him marry Emer. Cúchulainn stormed Forgall’s fortress, killing twenty-four of Forgall’s men, abducted Emer and stole Forgall’s treasure. Forgall himself fell from the ramparts to his death. An ally of Forgall’s, Scenn Menn, tried to stop the fleeing couple, but Cúchulainn killed him in single combat at a ford. Having proved his prowess, Emer now agreed to marry him.
Conchobar mac Nessa, the king of Ulster, had the “right of the first night” over all marriages of his subjects. He was afraid of Cúchulainn’s reaction if he exercised it in this case, but would lose his authority if he didn’t. A solution was found – Conchobar would sleep with Emer on the night of the wedding, but Cathbad the druid would sleep between them.
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