In comparison to the Anglo-Saxon and Viking culture, the Gaelic culture of Ancient Ireland is less known. In this blog, we assemble an Old Irish king from the 8th century AD. 

We know quite a lot about the Old Irish culture. Firstly, archaeology provides us a good insight into this period. But most information about the Gaelic culture of Ancient Ireland is found in the many written sources such as legal texts, annals, and stories like the Ulster Cycle, Fenian Cycle, and the Cycle of the Kings. 

The many mythological stories capture the imagination, but they are much more than that. They offer insight into the Old Irish norms and values and how people lived. Another indispensable source for this culture is Old Irish law. In some respects, Old Irish law resembles the Gulathingslov and Frostathing laws that were regionally used in Scandinavia during the Viking Age. 

All these sources were written down by Irish monks. Therefore, they are influenced by Christianity. But the very fact that the monks took the effort to write down many of the Old Irish mythological stories shows that this culture was still alive despite the introduction of Christianity.

There were different layers of kings in the Old Irish system. The society consisted of various tribes (tuath, plural: tuatha) which had conflicts and alliances among themselves. This is not much different from what you saw with the Germanic or Celtic tribes on the mainland of Europe and on the British Isles. Some tribes were powerful and large, other tribes were small. The tuath was in fact the predecessor of the Scottish clan. The Old Irish name for king is rí, plural: ríg.

The Rí tuaithe was king of the tribe. This can be compared to the clan chief in Scotland. This was the lowest level of king, but kings who had a higher level were themselves also Rí tuaithe over their own tribe. 

The Rí benn or Rí tuath was king of multiple tribes, for example, of a collection or alliance of tribes.

The Rí ruirech or Rí cóicid: stood above the ríg tuath and ruled a larger area, such as a province. There were at most six ríg ruirech in power at the same time. Medium there were about three or four in one period.

The Ard rí was the highest king. However, this was more of a ceremonial role, the lower kings had more authority. The ard rí was indeed a rí tuaithe for his own tuath and could even be a rí ruirech He held the highest office in Ireland and Scotland, with his seat in Tara.

All these kings had an unexpected advantage. There was no kingdom to take over because there were always hundreds of kings and candidates available. 

Additionally, it is notable how democratic the system was. All kings were expected to adhere to the law. Otherwise, they could be prosecuted, and brithemna, judges, imposed higher fines as the status of the offender was higher. There was a clear division of property, and each status was paired with a minimum possession. This avoided incompetent management and the risk of reduced productivity.

The Gaelic system ensured that Ireland and parts of Scotland consisted of many different states and kingdoms. Indirectly, this made it impossible for a foreign conquering force to simply annex all of Ireland. This ensured that both during the Viking colonizations and the English conquests, Ireland was never fully annexed by a foreign power until the 16th century.

There was a clear division of roles within the different classes. This came with a clear requirement for possession (particularly agricultural tools). Thus, the Tuath ensured that agriculture was conducted as efficiently as possible and that the land on which the Tuath lived was utilized.

A king was expected to be in good condition. It was forbidden for a king to be 'wounded'. He had to have his full hearing and sight and all his limbs. This is because the king was expected to protect his tribe.

Interestingly, 'being wounded' also means free from blemish. In cases of mismanagement, a bard could compose a satire about the king. This was a serious offense, causing the king to lose his kingship. However, you couldn't just create satire. Unjustified satire was a crime and was treated the same as injury, mutilation, or murder. Because the severity of the punishment was determined not only by the status of the perpetrator but also by the status of the victim, heavy fines could be imposed.

The Old Irish word fingal is translated into English as 'kin-slaying' and referred to the wounding or killing of a family member. Usually, Old Irish kings were succeeded by the most competent family member. The king always had to be completely healthy. Therefore, you could easily guarantee your kingship by gouging out an eye, cutting off a hand, or completely killing competent family members as a candidate. This occurred in Old Irish society and posed a problem because it was difficult to prosecute criminally. In case of punishment, not only the perpetrator but also the rest of his family was held responsible for paying the fine (usually expressed in dairy cattle).

The Old Irish culture was not purely Irish. After Ireland was converted to Christianity, several monks traveled to the British and European mainland to spread the faith. Thus, the oldest sources of the Irish language have been found in Sankt Gallen, Würzburg, and Milan. Early Ireland was certainly not a backwater of European history, but an important center of scholarship.

From the 5th century, the Irish conquered parts of Scotland. The kingdom of Dalriada consisted of a large part of the Scottish west coast and a portion of Northeast Ireland. This gave the Irish new neighbors: the Picts, a collection of Celtic tribes in Scotland, the Anglo-Saxons, and the kingdom of Strathclyde, which was founded by the Celtic Britons after the withdrawal of the Roman Empire. From the late 8th century, the British Isles and Ireland were attacked by the Vikings, which posed a threat to Irish society.

In this composition, we are inspired by King Conall mac Áedáin, Conall, son of Áedan, who ruled over Dalriada in the early 9th century. The kingdom of Dalriada consisted of the Scottish part, Argyll and Ross, and a part of Ulster in Northern Ireland. He was probably a rí ruirech or provincial king. The Annals of Ulster mention that he defeated King Conall mac Taidg in 807 and thus obtained the crown himself.

We have loosely based Conall's clothing on images from the Book of Kells. This book was probably made around 800 AD on Iona, where Saint Columba founded a monastery in 563. This abbey was plundered by the Vikings in 795, 802, and 806.

In this setup, we have considered the trade that the Old Irish population had around this time with, for example, the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. In 635, Irish monks (possibly from Iona) founded Lindisfarne on the East Coast of Northern England. This missionary work undoubtedly also brought trade and scientific exchanges with it. 

On the other hand, we have chosen not to add typical Viking objects to this composition. Around the time Conall mac Áedáin lived, the Vikings were his enemies, attacking and plundering his territory. Only later, in the 9th and 10th centuries, did a form of cultural overlap begin to emerge. 

As the first layer, Conall wears an undertunic or under léine. Léine is the Old Irish word for tunic, these tunics were usually long. T-léine is the Gaelic for T-shirt.

Conall was one of the most prominent leaders of his time. Therefore, we have based the colors of the fabric he wears on the saint from the 9th-century Book of Kells. He wears a long tunic (léine). We have deliberately chosen a size too large: the more fabric, the richer the wearer. If the léine is too long, it can be shortened by pulling it over the belt. 

In the 15th-16th century, kerns were depicted in Albrecht Dürer's sketches with wide sleeves. We assume this is a Renaissance trend. Therefore, Conall has regular sleeves. The colors blue, red, and purple (purple) were according to legal texts the most expensive colors, which only aristocrats could wear. 

To shape the léine  we use belts. This belt is a replica of a 6th-century Alamannic belt. The reason for this is because the decoration with point work and the three knobs also frequently appears in the Insular Celtic style in which much of the Old Irish religious art is made. 

In the early 9th century, the Irish kingdoms mainly had conflict, and little trade, with the Vikings. In the late 7th century, Adomnán, the 9th abbot of Iona, drafted the Lex Innocentium. This law protected innocent people in times of war and can be seen as a precursor to the Geneva Convention. But the Vikings did not care about that.

Besides his practical leather belt, we also let Conall wear a red textile belt. 

To protect himself from the wet cold Scottish and Irish weather, Conall wore a cloak (brat). This cloak was worn by all classes of society. Also with the brat the rule applied: the bigger the better. To keep the brat together, you could tuck it under the belt. The brat was used as a travel blanket. It was multifunctional and you could stand in the rain with it for hours. Eventually, the brat developed in the 16th century into the féileadh mòr (great kilt), which in turn further developed in the 18th century into the Scottish kilt. For an extra luxurious look, we chose a cloak that is hemmed with fur. 

The ancient Irish often fastened their brat with a fibula. The cloak we use was a bit too thick, which is why we placed the pin on the shoulder. The original of this pin dates back to the 9th century. The pin of the cloak pin was sometimes so long that it could injure someone else.

It is notable that this king does not wear trousers or footwear. In most images, the Irish are depicted barefoot, without trousers. Scotland and Ireland largely consist of marshy peat fields. As a result, the population preferred to go barefoot and without trousers. Even kings had this habit. A side note is that the climate of the time was a few degrees warmer than today. Therefore, the Irish did not harvest hay for the cattle, as they did not know harsh winters. The 10th-century Viking king Magnus the 3rd of Norway and the Isle of Man likely adopted this custom. He was called Magnus Barefoot. 

Nevertheless, a trousers and footwear have been found. Hence these alternatives. 

The ionar was a coat, or overtunic, about which not many written sources can be found. It was made of wool. There are various illustrations in the Book of Kells that point to such a coat.

Due to his high status, Conall could afford jewelry. The Irish were skilled silver- and goldsmiths, and many beautiful original brooches, rings, and bracelets have been found.

Conall wears a sword from the 7th-8th century. The original was found in Uppsala. Such swords were widely used by the Germanic peoples on the European mainland, in Scandinavia, and in the southern British Isles. Due to the ties with Northern England, via the monasteries of Lindisfarne and Iona, there was also trade with the Anglo-Saxons who used such swords. 

The sax may have also been acquired by Conall through Anglo-Saxon trade.

Although today we associate the sword with the warrior elite, in ancient Ireland the spear was the weapon par excellence. Old Irish has 43 different words for a type of spear. The spear that Áed wears here is based on an original from the 10th century, found in Dublin. It precisely matches the description of the sleg, a heavy spear that could be used for both throwing and thrusting.

Unfortunately, this model is no longer in our range. See suitable alternatives below.

These still need to be combined with a shaft.