Artuir mac Áedán

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Artuir mac Áedáin or Artúr mac Áedán was son of Áedán mac Gabráin and a prince of Dál Riata between the 6th and 7th centuries. Artuir was probably a war leader fighting Picts at the northern and eastern borders of the kingdom. He and his brother Eochaid Find were killed at the battle of Miathi[1] around 580–596 AD.

Artuir Mac Aedan is considered a candidate for the historical Arthur.[2][3] The argument for his candidature rises from his name's root ("Art"), his role as war leader and his emergence as the first verifiable "Art" in time and space after the Historia Brittonum and Annales Cambriæ Arthurian citations.

History[]

Artuir is mentioned in three medieval sources: in Adomnan's Life of St. Columba,[4] written c. 700; in the genealogical section of The History of the Men of Scotland,[5] originally compiled in the seventh century; and his death is also mentioned in the Annals of Tigernach, which date from around 1088.

His name, Artuir, derived from Arthur, is Brittonic, probably related to a Welsh mother. Maithgemma nic, daughter of Aedan, was said to be the niece of a Brittonic king. Aedan also had two grandsons and a great-grandson with Brittonic names,[6] and it is likely that Artuir was the son of Aedan's Brittonic wife and a brother of Maithgemma.[citation needed]

The Life of St. Columba mentions Artuir in a chapter between Aedan and Columba, where the saint predicts that Aedan's younger son, Eochaid Buide, will succeed instead of Aedan's chosen sons. Columba then predicts the deaths of Artuir, Eochaid Find, and Domangart while fighting their father's battles. Adomnan adds " Artuir and Echoid Find were slain a little while later, in the battle of Miathi mentioned above. Domangart was killed in a rout of battle in England", illustrating the fulfillment of Columba's prophecy. In the previous chapter, Adomnan portrayed Columba praying for Aedan's victory over the Miathi, indicating that the battle occurred before Columba's death in 596–597.

Artuir mac Aedan as King Arthur[]

The strongest evidence for a relationship between Artuir and King Arthur is that Artuir mac Áedán is the earliest verifiable historical character with the name Arthur. However, he is situated more than a generation too late to be the historical King Arthur. Bede, Irish annals, and other British sources fail to mention the traditional facts of King Arthur's life in association with Artuir mac Áedán or misdate the battles of Badon and Camlann by over 50 years. Furthermore, there is no evidences that the Welsh people fought as allies of Áedán in his wars against the Picts.[citation needed]

Also, Artuir died at the battle of Miathi as a prince, not a king. This is congruent with three major sources[7] about Arthur, where he was no king either, but a "dux bellorum". Consistent with Artuir mac Áedán possibly being the historical Arthur, Arthur's death at Camlann[8] could be also situated in Scottish territories. The Battle of Miathi could be near their citadel at Dumyat Hill ("the fortress of the Miathi") that overlooks the river Allan. A bend in the river Allan would be rendered in Gaelic something like "Cam Allan", similarly to the tradition.

It is possible[according to whom?] that Artuir did contribute one place-name and perhaps the four battles on the River Dubglas in Linnuis, as recorded by the Historia Brittonum.[9] On the Dalriada–Strathclyde border, W. F. Skene located a hill named Ben Arthur near Loch Long, not far from Glen Douglas in Lennox. Leslie Alcock[10] suggested this area as a possible location of the battles on the River Dubglas. Arthurian place-names were once common in Strathclyde, probably related to Artuir.[11]

References[]

  1. ^ Adomnan of Iona: Life of St. Columba. Book I. chap. VIII.
  2. ^ Chadwick, Nora. 1953. "The Lost Literature of Celtic Scotland: Caw of Pritdin and Arthur of Britain." Scottish Gaelic Studies 7:115–183.
  3. ^ Carroll, D. F. 1999. The Irrefutable Historical Evidence of the Existence of Arthur.
  4. ^ Book I, chap. IX
  5. ^ Senchus Fer n-Alban. The History of the Men of Scotland.
  6. ^ Bannerman, John. 1974. Studies in the History of Dalriada. Edinburgh: Scottish Academic Press.
  7. ^ Historia Brittonum, Annales Cambriæ and Y Gododdin.
  8. ^ The Annales Cambriæ.
  9. ^ Historia Brittonum, chap. 56 or 50 (Giles Compilation)
  10. ^ Alcock, Leslie (2001). Arthur's Britain: History and archaeology, AD 367–634. London: Penguin Books. pp. 64–66. ISBN 0141390697.
  11. ^ Stuart-Glennie, John S. (1994) [1869]. Arthurian localities: Their historical origin, chief country, and Fingalian relations; with a map of Arthurian Scotland. Felinfach,UK: Llanerch Press. pp. 83–93, 130. ISBN 1897853475. Facsimile of original 1869 ed.CS1 maint: postscript (link)

External links[]

  • Adamnan: Life of St. Columba [1].
  • Senchus Fer n-Alban. The History of the Men of Scotland [2]
Retrieved from ""