The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a major wave of airstrikes Thursday against Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon, citing clear violations of the November 2024 ceasefire agreement. Israeli officials

It is no secret that author George R.R. Martin looked to the Wars of the Roses as inspiration for A Game of Thrones. The HBO prequel series, House of the Dragon, is similarly inspired by another period of English history. Lacking a (living) son, Henry I named his daughter Matilda as his heir. When he died, the nobility turned instead to her cousin Stephen, who had the distinct advantage of being a man. This led to the Anarchy, a civil war that lasted nearly two decades.Henry Takes the ThroneKing Henry I, miniature from illuminated Chronicle of Matthew Paris, 13th century. Source: The British LibraryIn November 1120, the succession of the English throne was thrown into question. The only legitimate son of King Henry I, William, died in a shipwreck while crossing the English Channel. Henry was the third son of William the Conqueror, who had taken control of England less than a century earlier, in 1066. His eldest son, Robert, inherited the Duchy of Normandy, and his second son, William, inherited the English throne. Henry, as the third and youngest son, was left with little to inherit.This all changed on August 2nd, 1100, when William II (Rufus) was (accidentally?) killed while hunting. He had no children, so the crown of England should have passed to his elder brother, the Duke of Normandy, but Robert was away on the First Crusade, so Henry took the opportunity presented to him and was crowned King Henry I of England three days later.When Duke Robert returned and challenged his brother, they arranged a short-lived settlement which compensated him for renouncing his claim to the English throne. A few years later, Henry invaded Normandy, took Robert prisoner, and reunified their fathers lands as both the Duke of Normandy and the King of England. Robert spent the rest of his life, 29 years, imprisoned.A manuscript image of the sinking of the White Ship and death of William, son of Henry I. Source: British LibraryHenrys rule was a relatively quiet onefor England at least. He fought over Normandy repeatedly, against Louis VI of France, Fulk of Anjou, and his own nephew, William Clito, but emerged triumphant in early 1120. His wife, Matilda of Scotland, had died two years previously, but he felt his line secure with a son and a daughter.The daughter, Matilda (sometimes called Maud, to differentiate her from her mother, her rival King Stephens wife, and the many other Matildas in the family), had been sent to the Holy Roman Empire to wed Emperor Heinrich V in 1114 when she was twelve years old. As we see in the world of House of the Dragon, royal marriages were used to cement political and familial alliances. Girls and women had virtually no choice in the matter, but even princes were subject to the needs of the state.She took her position as empress very seriously, never relinquishing the title despite the fact she lost the position when her husband died in 1125. Without children, she had no reason to stay in the empire so she returned to England.Dynastic PlansPortrait of Empress Mathilda, from History of England by St. Albans monks, 15th century. Source: Reading MuseumMatilda had become her fathers heir on her brothers death five years previously but, at the time, there was little expectation that she would actually succeed him. Henry had remarried in 1121, and his young wife Adelaide might still produce a son. Unlike Viserys and Alicent, however, this couple never had any children.When she was widowed, he quickly arranged a marriage for her with Geoffrey Plantagenet, the 13-year-old Count of Anjou. Matilda was not happy with the marriage: it greatly reduced her status (though she still insisted she be called empress).Rhaenyra Targaryen inspired by Empress Matilda. Source: IMDbOnce Geoffrey reached adulthood, she managed to work with him begrudgingly, particularly as it related to maintaining her familial inheritance to Normandy. They also had three children together, the eldest, Henry, was born in 1133.The English barons whom Henry I had forced to swear loyalty to her and her heirs as his successor must have been relievedthe crown need not pass to a woman after all. But, Henry was confident in his daughter as his heir and so did not rearrange the succession in his grandsons favor.Things may not have been different if he had, since the man who claimed the throne at Henrys death just two years later, Stephen of Blois, had an equal claim to the throne to his cousin Matilda; they were both grandchildren of William the Conqueror, Stephen by the Conquerors daughter Adela. More important to many, he was a grandson.Claiming the CrownKing Stephen, 1597-1618. Source: The National Portrait GalleryWhen Henry I died in December 1135, Matilda and Geoffrey were in Normandy. Like Rhaenyra in House of the Dragon, the fact she was not in the capital immediately disadvantaged her claim. When news of the kings death reached them, the two moved to gain control over several fortresses in the Duchy, thinking that would give them a better position from which to secure England.Unfortunately, none of Matildas supporters were in London to argue her case. It was quickly obvious that even those who had promised to support her were not willing to follow through.In the meantime, Stephen of Blois crossed the Channel and arrived in London in time to argue his position that he was the rightful heir and that Henry had been wrong to force the barons to swear loyalty to a woman. His brother Henry, the Bishop of Winchester, lent his (and thereby the Churchs) support. Lastly, Stephen was granted access to the treasury by the lord chancellor, a sure sign of support by the aristocracy. Stephen I was crowned on December 22, 1135.On the advice of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Pope Innocent II sent his approval, essentially guaranteeing Stephens legitimacy. Not unexpectedly, Stephen faced rebellions early in his reign, but they were put down fairly quickly. By the Spring of 1138, it seemed England would be at peace, with Stephen as king. Matilda and Geoffrey had taken control of most of Normandy, which Stephen did not dispute.Christ and His Saints SleptIllustration of the Battle of Lincoln from the History of England, by Henry of Huntingdon, 12th-13th century. Source: The British LibraryIn the summer of 1138, Robert of Gloucester, an illegitimate son of Henry I, publicly renounced his oath to Stephen and declared in favor of his half-sister, the Empress Matilda. This prompted rebellions to again spring up across England, this time with some level of organization from Matildas camp. Further support came from Dowager Queen Adeliza, who offered her home of Arundel Castle as a base of operations for her step-daughter. Unlike Alicent, Adeliza had no sons to support and so had no reason to dispute the intended succession. Stephen soon heard where Matilda was and besieged the castle.It was a short siege; Stephens brother, Bishop Henry, negotiated for Matildas release. The details have not survived, so why Stephen gave up his rival at this point is as good as unknown. After this, the Empress moved her headquarters to Gloucester and was able to hold control over much of southwestern England. The support she gained after this seems to have come more from opposition to Stephen than an endorsement of her own claim, but she saw this as no reason to turn them away.Arundel Castle, photo by Gary J Stearman. Source: UnsplashIn February 1141, Stephen was captured by an army led by Robert of Gloucester. Empress Matilda started arrangements to be crowned and negotiated oaths of fealty from those who were willing to change sides in her favor. However, while King Stephen was imprisoned, his wife (also confusingly called Matilda) took charge of the cause and was reassured when the people of London refused the empress entry to the city in June 1141.Shortly after she was forced away from the capital, Robert was also captured by Queen Matildas forces. Both sides refused to give any ground, until they were convinced to do a simple prisoner exchange in November 1141. Fighting continued and Stephens forces captured the empress in the autumn of 1142. She escaped shortly before Christmas, leaving the grounds on a horse shod backward to confuse anyone trying to track her.From this point, the war ground on for years, the empress making gains here and King Stephen there, but nothing decisive enough to end the war. The fighting was so destructive to the English countryside that it caused a famine. The people, as the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says, felt so abandoned by both governments that it was said openly that Christ and his saints slept.The Plantagenet DynastyHenry II, 1597-1618. Source: National Portrait GalleryLittle changed over the next few years, but in 1147 things began to shift: Robert of Gloucester died, leaving Matilda without her most important general. Both sides also lost soldiers and leaders to a cause they found more worthy, the Second Crusade. In Matildas camp, the focus shifted away from her claim to the throne in favor of that of her eldest son, Henry, a move supported by the empress herself.At 14 years old, Henry had already established that he favored his inheritance from his mother by styling himself Henry FitzEmpress (son of the Empress) and ignoring his fathers name and title. In that year, with all of the self-confidence of a teenager who cannot imagine things going the wrong way, Henry put together an army in Normandy and crossed the Channel with the intent of taking his throne. All of this was without his mothers knowledge.Ruins of Wallingford Castle, where the treaty took place. Source: Wikimedia CommonsHenry had not planned his invasion well. One gets the feeling that he expected an outpouring of support as soon as he landed, but the reality was that he had few plans, little support, and not even enough money to pay his soldiers. They were captured and, rather than threaten them as enemy combatants, Stephen treated them as errant children. Stephen paid the men and sent Henry home to his mother.Henry returned to England six years later, with his mothers war chest and soldiers. He had also quietly negotiated with members of the English nobility, giving him much-needed political support. A couple of small battles showed Stephen that Henry had come a long way since his previous attempt, prompting the beginning of negotiations to end the more than two decades of war.The Treaty of Wallingford was signed on Christmas Day 1153. Henry did not immediately get the throne but became Stephens heir. He did not need to wait long to inherit: Stephen died just ten months later. Henry II was crowned on December 19, 1154, beginning the Plantagenet Dynasty who ruled England for centuries to come.

In the early 16th century, the Portuguese explorer Aleixo Garcia found himself with a unique opportunity: to join the indigenous Guarani in an expedition across the Peabiru path, from the south of Brazil to the capital city of the Inca Empire in the heart of the Andes. This pre-Columbian pathway of uncertain origin connected the various regions of South America and was used to exchange goods, culture, and ideas among the indigenous peoples.Peabirus First European Traveler: Aleixo GarciaAmerica by Charles Le Brun, 17th century. Source: Pinacoteca do Estado de So PauloAt the end of a mission across southern South America, explorer Aleixo Garcia found himself stranded: a shipwreck had ruined his chance to travel back to his Portuguese homeland, so Garcia was forced to find new ways to survive. One possibility was to integrate with the locals. And so it was: for eight years, Garcia lived among the Guarani, one of the largest indigenous groups of the region, learning their language and customs. And before long, it was time for a brand-new adventure.In 1524, the Portuguese explorer joined the Guarani on a mission across the Peabiru path, a 1,000 km (600 mi) journey westward into the interior portions of the sub-continent. Accompanied by an army of 2,000 indigenous warriors, Garcia traveled through the dense forests and rugged terrain of what are now Brazil and Paraguay, from the southeastern coast of South America all the way to the Andes mountains.The expedition was driven by tales of a mysterious, rich land known for its wealth in gold and silver, related to the legends about the mythical El Dorado. But as fantastical as these lands sounded, they were far from fictional: these legends described what is today known as the Inca Empire.A year after starting the mission, the group reached Cusco, the capital of the Incas. Although the Incas were waiting for the invaders with an army of 20,000 men, Garcias group was able to collect substantial quantities of silver and other valuables, confirming the legends of the rich lands to the west.Peabiru: Ancient TravelwayUp Temple steps at Pachacamac a High Priest bears the Suns golden image, by Herbert M. Herget, 1938. Source: National Geographic via Wikimedia CommonsThe tale of Garcias remarkable expedition on the Peabiru pathway is one of exploration and ambition. But although the Portuguese explorer was the first European to penetrate deep into the interior of South America, many others had walked these steps before him.Linking the Atlantic coast of modern-day Brazil to the interior regions of South America, the Peabiru path is one of the gems of pre-Columbian history. The name of this 4,000-kilometer (2,500-mi) system of trails comes from the Tupi-Guarani language: Peya Beyu, meaning crumpled grass path. It first appeared in written sources in 1873 in Spanish Jesuit missionary and historian Pedro Lozanos book History of the Conquest of Paraguay, River Plate, and Tucumn. However, the name seems to have been in use even earlier, dating to just after the arrival of Portuguese and Spanish sailors in Brazil in the 16th century.Although details about the pathways origin and extent remain a mystery, archaeologists agree that the Peabiru was widely known and used by many indigenous populations, including the Tupi, Guarani, and Inca civilizations. It was probably the largest of the ancient trail systems that connected the indigenous groups of pre-Columbian South America.Digital representation of the Peabiru pathway, Estdio Preto e Branco, 2022. Source: Museu do IpirangaIts main road had three starting points along modern Brazils south and southeast Atlantic coast, corresponding to the present-day states of So Paulo, Paran, and Santa Catarina. It then crossed the interior portion of the continent, passing through present-day Argentina, Paraguay, and Bolivia until it reached the Inca lands in the Andes. There, the Peabiru merged with the Qhapaq Nan, an Inca trail system of over 30,000 km (18,640 mi) recognized as a World Heritage Site in 2004.The Peabiru is a testament to the sophisticated engineering and navigation skills of the indigenous peoples. Its construction, often through dense forests and across vast distances, showcases the ingenuity and skillfulness of these ancient communities. But as important as it was, the Peabiru was only one of the many trail systems that ran through South America.Also worth highlighting are Araucanian paths, a system that connected the southern portion of present-day Chile and Argentina and allowed migration and trade between the different Mapuche peoples of the region. The Chachapoya paths in northern Peru connected the high-altitude settlements of the Andes, often located in remote and rugged areas. A series of land and river trade networks also cut through the dense rainforests of Amazonia and were used by groups such as the Tupi, Arawaj, and Carib.Exploring the Peabirus Possible OriginsPhotograph of Rock Art Serra da Capivara Archaeological Park, 2014. Source: Douglas Iuri Medeiros CabralThe exact origin of the pathway is still debated by archaeologists and historians. Some sources date it to 3,000 years ago, while others suggest a much earlier origin for the trail system. Archaeologist Claudia Ins Parellada, an expert on the history of the Peabiru, points to a possible link between these paths and the Paleo-Indian hunter-gatherers of 10,000 years ago. Her hypothesis suggests these ancient natives were the initial builders of trails that would later be incorporated into the Peabiru.Theories from the 19th century support the hypothesis of an Inca origin, suggesting that the Peabiru was created to expand their empire to the Atlantic Ocean. Others defend the theory that the Guarani originally made the pathway to maintain contact with other indigenous groups and create a sort of mail system from the south of Brazil to Amazonia.Peabiru in the Indigenous MythosTupi man, by Albert Eckhout, 1643. Source: National Museum of DenmarkWhile the natives left no written records detailing the use of the Peabiru, the trail system was undoubtedly central to their societies. Many of the chroniclers of the conquest describe how the pathway was used extensively for the interconnection of cultures and as a trade route. In particular, it served an important role for the Guarani, who used it to travel to the Inca Empire and bring some of its gold back to their own lands.The route was not only used for trade and communication; there was a spiritual meaning attached to it as well. The Guarani placed the pathway within their mythic worldview, embedded in their search for the Land with no Evil. Following the suns path from east to west, the Peabiru could have been used to try to reach their sacred land. Guarani oral tradition also suggests that the distribution and shape of the trails within the Peabiru mirrored the MilkwayMobor rap, in their language.Exploring the Indigenous perspective and interpretation regarding this pathway allows a better understanding of the intrinsic relationship between spirituality and everyday life for their communities, enhancing present-day knowledge regarding these mysterious paths.Colonizing the PeabiruMap of a probable path followed by Cabeza de Vaca in 1541. Map by Guilerme Blaeu, 1635. Source: Parellada, Claudia. (2022). ARQUEOLOGIA DO PEABIRU: ENTRELAANDO CAMINHOS E CONFLITOS. Revista Habitus Revista do Instituto Goiano de Pr-Histria e Antropologia. 19. 276.Aleixo Garcias expedition on the Peabiru sparked Europes imagination regarding the possibilities that adventuring across South America could offer. In 1541, the Spanish explorer known as Cabeza de Vaca also sought out the support and guidance of the Guarani while seeking to explore the mythical pathway. Leaving from the region of the Itapocu River along the south of the Atlantic coast, he crossed the interior of the continent until reaching present-day Paraguay, where he was elected governor of the province.The existence of the trail system also came to be known beyond Spain and Portugal. In 1552, Bavarian Ulrich Schmidl received guidance from Guaranis to reach the province of So Vicente, in present-day So Paulo, leaving from the city of Assuncin, Paraguay. He detailed this six-month expedition in what became one of the most important written descriptions of the Peabiru, serving as a guide for other European explorers in the early days of South Americas colonization. Among the many details provided in his manuscript is a description of the bifurcation of the pathway on the East coast, where it divides between a route to the coast of Santa Catarina and a path that went all the way north to So Paulo.First mass in Brazil, by Victor Meirelles, 1860. Source: Museu Nacional de Belas ArtesThe path also played an essential role in the Christianization of the natives. Serving as a route for Jesuit missionaries of the early 17th century, the Peabiru was the only way into the interior parts of the continent that were inaccessible by sea. It was largely the exploration of these missionary priests, who also described the many alternative routes, that resulted in valuable historical sources for understanding this mysterious trail system.The Peabiru TodayPhotograph of the modern Peabiru trail, by Roberto Dziura, 2022. Source: Government of ParanaIdentifying traces of the ancient pathway is challenging. Over the centuries, the construction of roads over the ancient routes and natural changes in the landscape have erased most of the trails. However, archaeologists have undertaken numerous efforts to preserve and study the remnants of the Peabiru that are still identifiable.In 1970, archaeologists from the Federal University of Paran identified around 30 kilometers (19 mi) of the trail system. They identified archaeological sites along the trail, with traces of dwellings used by indigenous peoples who traveled in the region. More recently, an initiative carried out by the Brazilian state of Paran has been devoted to revitalizing the pathway. The so-called Peabiru Project aims to restore at least 1,550 out of the total 4,000 kilometers of the ancient road, creating a tourist attraction that will bring new visitors to the location and immerse them in the landscape of pre-colonial South America.Some of the techniques applied in identifying the path involve analyzing historical sources and involving native communities. By providing their traditional and ancestral narratives, the indigenous are playing a central role in revitalizing the pathway, making the reconstruction even more accurate. Their participation also allows Indigenous voices to be at the forefront of historical research and heritage management, making them protagonists in their own history.Peabiru: Connecting Past and PresentThe Guarani continue fighting for their land rights despite continuous attacks. Fiona Watson, 2017. Source: SurvivalThe efforts to identify and recover the Peabiru are important for multiple reasons. By studying what remains, researchers can gain a deeper understanding of the social, economic, and cultural exchanges among the pre-Columbian indigenous communities for which it had a central role.Recovering and preserving the Peabiru presents a way for the groups that still inhabit the regions to honor their ancestors, contributing to cultural continuity. It holds a significant cultural and spiritual value to them, and therefore, it is a crucial endeavor in the valorization of their history.The Peabiru Pathway is more than just a series of trails; it is a bridge to the past. Its preservation contributes to revitalizing this precious, but often forgotten, part of South American history.

From the pre-Christian heroic age to the arrival of the Vikings in the late 8th century, Irish kings were almost constantly at war with each other. At stake were both the material and symbolic accouterments of status that would allow them to dominate their neighbors.The most powerful of these kings would claim the title of High King of Ireland, usually equated with the kingship of Tara. Yet adopting a highfalutin style did not make it so. One of the few consistent things about a kings power within this loose system of overlordship was that it almost never outlasted the individual whose personal gravitas had paved the way for them to claim such a position. A profound lack of centralization, coupled with the effective absence of any organs of government, made for a true political free-for-all in Early Medieval Ireland.Irish Society During the Early Medieval PeriodCounty Meath, Hill of Tara. Source: Wikimedia CommonsWe are arguably better informed about the nature of society in early medieval Ireland than in almost any other part of Europe. The arrival of St Patrick, and thus of Christianity, in Ireland is dated to 432 CE by the Irish annals. Although this date is thought to be artificially early by historians, who espouse the so-called two Patricks theory, and see this retrospective editing of history as part of an effort to discredit the efforts of other missionaries such as Palladius. Most scholars agree that the historical St Patrick had probably arrived in Ireland by the late 5th century. Thus, Ireland began its conversion to Christianity well over a century before the arrival of Augustine in England in 597, and it was largely achieved by this date. The Annals of Ulster, record St Columbas arrival on Iona, and his foundation of a monastery there, under the year 563.The implications of this are significant. Ireland was to develop monasteries, libraries, and scriptoria (writing rooms where illuminated manuscripts were produced) to support a budding literate culture long before the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. As such, there is a proliferation of chronicles, annals (year-by-year records of significant events), saints lives, and legal texts that can tell us much about Irish society from as early as the 6th century.Entry in the Annals of Ulster regarding the year 912, 15th-century copy. Source: Trinity College DublinWhat emerges from these written sources is that Ireland in the Early Medieval Period was an immensely complex tapestry of different kingdoms and sub-kingdoms, constantly forming and reforming into new constellations. The fundamental socio-political unit here was the tath (pl. tatha), meaning people in Old Irish. Although there are varying interpretations of the precise semantics of the word, Thomas Charles-Edwards, one of the leading historians of medieval Ireland, defined it essentially as preeminently a community of farmers as well as the domain of public acts. If searching for an analog from the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, we would probably find it either in the hundred or the shire, discrete territorial groupings with their own self-contained legal jurisdictions.It seems to have been very common for tatha to combine into larger polities under more powerful kings, who in turn might compete with each other for the kingship of a larger kingdom comprising most or all of what we would call a province, such as Ulster or Meath, the largest political unit. The five provinces of Ireland, in fact, owe much to the geopolitics of these early Irish conflicts.Map of early medieval Ireland, showing the kingship groups and their power bases. Source: Early Medieval ArchaeologyThese three levels of kingship, each of which was broadly within the range of normalcy at any one time, are reflected in 7th-century Irish laws. The text Crith Gablach (a text on status) describes three ranks of king: r ruirech (king of great kings), r buiden (a king of war bands), and r tathe (a king of a people). If there is even a degree of veracity to this idealized hierarchy of power, Ireland was truly a country bursting at the seams with kings.Inextricable from the tath was the kinship group, or fine, which was arguably the main basis for kingly legitimacy in early medieval Ireland. The view of kinship that we get from the sources is arguably somewhat skewed since it was vulnerable to tampering by later scholars who wished to legitimize dynasties by associating them, fictitiously, with a famous historical ancestor such as Niall of the Nine Hostages. Within a kinship group such as the U Neill, the alleged descendants of Niall, there were several sub-groups each ruling over their own tatha.In Meath, dominated by the southern U Neill, there were six branches of the dynasty competing for power and status: Cenl nndai, Cenl Coirpri, Cenl Legaire, Clann Cholmin, Sl nedo Sline, and Cenl Fiachach. Each of these ruled over their own tath and would compete to dominate the tatha around them. The most powerful among these could then hope to lay claim to the kingship of Meath. The northern U Neill dynasties, the Cenl nEgain and the Cenl Conaill would similarly compete for power in Ailech, in the far north of Ireland.The two halves of Ireland, Leth Cuinn and Leth Moga. Source: Wikimedia CommonsWhile kings were consistently able to project power over an entire province and thus become ri ruirech, it was more unusual to obtain overlordship over other provinces. Certain exceptional figures, such as ed Alln from the northern Cenl nEgain Dynasty in the 8th century, were able to dominate other kingdoms. The most powerful kings among the U Neill could lay claim to the kingship of Tara, denoting kingship over all of the U Neill kindreds and tatha in both the north of Ireland and in Meath.Even rarer was a king that could project power over the two halves of Ireland, Leth Cuinn (Conns half, the provinces of Meath, Ulster and Connacht) and Leth Moga (Mugs half, the provinces of Leinster and Munster). No king was in fact able to do this until the later 9th century.In the contest for power in Ireland, titles and styles were important. Ireland was a land that put a lot of stock in symbolism and sacred places such as Tara, which was central to the U Neill kindreds own power. The polities cobbled together by Irish kings were never two of the same, and kingship was based both on control over territory and other kin groups. But how did kings compete for power in early medieval Ireland, and what constituted power?Irish Warfare in the 5th to 9th CenturiesThe hero Cu Chulainn defends Ulster during the Cattle Raid of Cooley, by J.C. Leyendecker, 1911. Source: Wikimedia CommonsEarly Irish literature, chiefly the so-called Ulster Cycle, paints early Christian Ireland as a war-torn land wracked with feuds and dominated by heroes. Some of the stories contained in the Ulster Cycle are no less dramatic, or tragic than what we find in the great Greek epics.One episode, from The Death of Aifes Only Son, sees the hero of the Ulster cycle, C Chulainn, slay his own son Connla, who had come to Ulster after having pledged to his mother Aife not to reveal his identity, nor ever to back down from a challenge. Another famous epic from the Ulster Cycle is the so-called Cattle Raid of Cooley, in which Queen Medb of Connacht invades Ulster, seeking out the precious stud bull, Donn Cailnge. Cu Chulainn defends Ulster single-handedly, killing hundreds of his opponents, each in single combat, which eventually forces Queen Medb to retreat.Kite aerial photograph of the Multivallate Ringfort at Rathr, Co Roscommon, Ireland. Source: Wikimedia CommonsThe Ulster Cycle is useful insofar as it reflects how people in early medieval Ireland conceptualized a heroic past in light of their own experience. No doubt warfare was somewhat more prosaic than the tales of individual prowess and heroism in the Tain suggest. Yet the Ulster Cycle puts some rather fanciful flesh on a skeleton of truth. Cattle raiding was indeed a key element in the power play between petty kings in early medieval Ireland. The first reference to cattle raiding in Irish chronicles comes in 628, and there are numerous references thereafter.The Annals of Ulster entry for 721, for instance, describes An invasion of the Laigin (men of Leinster) by Fergal, and that the cattle-tribute was imposed and the hostages of the Laigin secured for Fergal son of Mael Din. As difficult as these laconic entries can be to decipher, the impression we get from the sources is of a world of hit-and-run raids for wealth in cattle and kind. The ring-forts which are so ubiquitous in the Irish landscape are undoubtedly a reflection of widespread cattle raiding, and the need of ordinary farmers to protect themselves from it on a smaller scale.The Tara Brooch, an exquisite example of pre-Viking Age metalwork from Ireland, when silver was scarce and used only for high-status goods, 7th-8th century. Source: Wikimedia CommonsWhile Irish warfare may not have been as glorious as the epics suggest, there seems little reason to doubt that kings fought alongside their fan, or warband, in the thick of the fighting. The Irish annals are full of references to Irish kings dying in battle, to the extent that they form a large part of the subject matter. From this, it may be inferred that battles involved relatively small armies. In order to conduct lightning raids, armed forces needed to be mobile, and to retreat quickly into friendly territory with their bounty.The nature of warfare as a small-scale, individualistic affair would also go a long way toward explaining the frequency of violent deaths in battle of kings, who might have been better able to protect themselves from danger had they been in command of larger military forces.There seems little reason to doubt, furthermore, that Irish armies were poorly armored, or not at all. The settlement of the Vikings in the 9th century brought urbanization and the production of armaments, including hauberks, or coats of mail. The importance attached to these items by later texts such as the Cogadh Gaedhel re Gallaibh, which singles out the Vikings for their use of heavy armor, suggests that chainmail was rare before the arrival of the Vikings in Ireland.The fates of Irish kings during the 6th and 7th centuries. Source: Thomas Charles-EdwardsRaiding for cattle was important since there was no coinage in Ireland at this time, and silver, in general, was relatively rare before the Viking Age, when Scandinavian raiders and traders brought Ireland within a network of long-distance trade stretching to the shores of the Caspian Sea, bringing exotic goods with them. Precious metals seem only to have been used for very high-status items, such as the Tara Brooch, before this. Nor is there any evidence for fortifications of the type that would allow armies to dominate the landscape, as Edward the Elder and thelflaed were able to do against the Vikings during the unification of Anglo-Saxon England. Neither the Irish rths nor the symbolic hillfort sites such as Tara, show any evidence of having been used in this way.Without defensible positions from which to hold down territory, or a source of wealth which could store value and itself could be easily stored and protected, it was almost impossible to establish any kind of consolidated political advantage. There is no doubt that this explains, in large part, the interminable violence, and the pattern of raid and counter-raid, which characterized kingly politics in early medieval Ireland.Institutions of KingshipStone of Destiny, Hill of Tara. Source: Wikimedia CommonsOn what then, did the power of ambitious Irish kings rest, aside from the pattern of cattle-raiding and battles recounted by the annals, and embellished by the epics? The evidence of the annals gives us a few scraps of information in this regard.Both the Annals of Ulster and historical texts connected with St Patrick written at Armagh make reference to an event known as the Feast of Tara. This was the site for one of the confrontations between Legaire, one of the supposed sons of Niall of the Nine Hostages, and St Patrick, at which various texts recount Legaire as having plotted the death of Patrick and having been foiled by the saint. The Life of St Patrick by Muirch places at the Feast of Tara alongside Legaire the kings, satraps, leaders, princes and the nobles of the people; also the druids, incantators, fortune-tellers, and the inventors and teachers of every skill and craft.Although little can be gleaned from the sources about the nature of this event, it seems likely that the Feast served as an occasion for sub-kings to renew their allegiances to the king of Tara, and perhaps for gift-giving and the formation of new political alliances. The nature of the Feast as a pagan festival is supported by the annals, which record the last instance of the Feast of Tara in 560, by which time the conversion of Ireland to Christianity was mostly complete. Yet Tara continued to be an important site, playing host to an important ecclesiastical synod in 780 between the men of the U Neill and Leinster.The Rock of Cashel, the royal site associated with the kings of Munster. Source: Wikimedia CommonsTara was not the only important royal site in Ireland during the Early Medieval Period. The Rock of Cashel, sometimes known as Cashel of the Kings in the Irish annals, was the symbolic site associated with the kings of Munster. Emain Macha in Ulster was also a pagan site until the 4th century and was probably an important center associated with the kings of Ulaid during the following centuries. The Griann of Ailech was the royal site contested by the northern U Neill kindreds and was an altogether more impressive spectacle with a five-meter-high (16-foot) ring stone wall, probably built during the 8th century, crowning a prominent hill in Co. Donegal.What all these sites have in common is a long history stretching back into the early Iron Age, and even in some cases going back to the Neolithic Period. Association with a site of such antiquity must have endowed the king in question with a degree of legitimacy, a sense that their dynasty too had an ancient claim to power and authority. It is not unlikely that Irish kings held regular assemblies here at which their vassals, and sub-kings from further afield, attended.The Grianan of Ailech, the royal site of the northern U Neill kings. photo by Mark McGaughey. Source: Wikimedia CommonsAnother ceremonial event associated with the U Neill kings was the so-called Oenach Tailten (Fair of Teltown). The Annals of Ulster, with its characteristic aversion to expanding on details, describes under the year 717 a Disturbance of the fair of Tailtiu by Fogartach, in which Rubas son and Dub Slibes son fell. The Fair of Teltown seems to have been held regularly right up to the Norman Invasion of Ireland in 1171. The nature of the occasion, unfortunately, remains shrouded in mystery.Some modern Irish observers conceptualize the event as a kind of Gaelic Olympics, endowing it with a history that reaches far back into the prehistoric past. Whatever the truth of the matter, it is likely that the Fair of Teltown was primarily an occasion for forging alliances and for the visual demonstration of status and munificence on the part of the king of Meath. It may also have served as an opportunity for traders to flaunt their wares to assembled guests, and for the latter to exchange the latest rumors and gossip. The disturbance of such a fair constituted an affront to the royal dignity, a challenge that any presiding king must have had to meet with punitive justice in sight of their dependents.Slender as the evidence may be, it seems that there was some limited institutional underpinning to the power of Irish kings. The association with ceremonial sites, often centuries-old already by the time of St Patricks arrival in Ireland, enabled kings to claim a legitimacy that periodic feasts, fairs, and assemblies may have served to reify and enhance.The Role of the ChurchThe portrayal of the U Neill kindreds in the historical material associated with St Patrick at Armagh. Source: Thomas Charles-EdwardsThe influence of the Church can only have added to this sense that some dynasties in particular were singled out for greatness. The history, and pseudo-history, of St Patrick was a convenient device in this regard. During the 7th century, the Church of Armagh lay claim to the heritage of St Patrick as a means of legitimizing its primacy among the churches of Ireland. St Patricks own writings, the Confessio, and the Epistola, make no reference to Armagh, but two later scholars, Muirch and Trechn, both sought to realign Paticks missionary itinerary through Ireland to give pride of place to Armagh.Irish scholars predilection for tampering with their own history was not confined to the world of the Church, however. Muirch and Trechn both frame Patricks conversion of Ireland partially as a sequence of encounters with various progenitors of U Neill dynasties. Patrick is said to prophesy a glorious future for certain branches of the family and to condemn others to obscurity. Clann Cholmin from the southern U Neill, and Cenl Conaill from the northern U Neill, were singled out in particular for greatness, while other branches of the family such as Cenl Fiachach and Cenl Coirpri, were rejected. Yet other famous branches, such as the Cenl nogain, were ignored and may only have claimed kinship with the other U Neill dynasties later.Saint Patrick, Statue from Belfast City Center, photo by K. Mitch Hodge. Source: UnsplashComparing this with the evidence of the Irish annals, what emerges is that the kindreds favored by St Patrick were, in fact, the predominant dynasties of the 7th and 8th centuries, not those who ruled during the 5th and 6th centuries, when St Patrick is thought to have been active. It is a clear case of history being written, or commissioned, by the victors.Those branches of the U Neill who were best able to patronize the Church of Armagh were to receive a return on their investment: blessing and legitimation from Irelands principal saint interpolated into the churchs historical traditions. Historical contingency became historical destiny, and the ascendant kinship groups were given the legitimacy of a value and apparent antiquity no less compelling than that conferred by their association with ancient hillforts.How to Become a King in Early Medieval IrelandGlens of Antrim, Northern Ireland, by K. Mitch Hodge. Source: UnsplashThus far we have dealt with kinship groups, and their legitimacy in providing kings of larger political units, such as the provinces of Meath or Ulster. But how to choose a king from among the ranks of a kinship group? If the origin of the various branches of the U Neill lies in the pseudo-historical mists of the 5th century, then by the 7th and 8th centuries there would have been scores, potentially hundreds, of eligible candidates for the kingship of a tath such as that controlled by Cenl Conaill in the southern U Neill territories.The central concept for determining candidature for kingship was febas, or personal excellence. The greater part of this had to do with descent, both in the male and female line. A successful candidate needed to have had either a father, grandfather, or great-grandfather who had been king. If all three had been kings, he would be in a very strong position.High-status relatives on the maternal side, such as kings of the same tatha or a neighboring one, both alive and dead, could also provide claimants with an edge over their rivals. Those possessing the requisite royal lineage were known as rgdamnae, or royal material. There is a strong parallel here between early medieval Ireland and Anglo-Saxon England, where the term theling denoted throne-worthiness, not any kind of special status as the kings chosen heir.Cliffs in Donegal, Photo by Majestic Lukas. Source: UnsplashAside from this, the sources offer tantalizing hints of the personal qualities involved in laying claim to the kingship of a tath, or a larger political unit such as a province. This is clearest in the case of an extraordinary sequence of events, when a potentate from outside the U Neill kindreds, Congal Cech of the Cruithni in Ulaid, laid claim to the kingship of Tara in the 630s.In 628, Congal had defeated and slain Suibne Menn of Cenl nEgain, who himself had taken power by slaying his rival Mel Coba from Cenl Conaill twelve years previously. A most unlikely source, the Bechbretha, a legal tract on beekeeping, gives us a fascinating incidental detail about Congal Cech, recounting how he was blinded after being stung in the eye by a bee owned by his rival for the kingship of Tara, Domnall mac edo. His partial blindness, a physical blemish, apparently disqualified Congal for the kingship, although he was still trying to reclaim it in 637 when he was slain in the Battle of Mag Rath, against Domnall.Excerpt from the Bechbretha, 7th-century law-tract. Source: Trinity College DublinThere is again, here, a likely discrepancy between the written sources, especially legalistic ones, which presented a somewhat idealized version of how royal succession worked in Ireland, and the historical reality. Congal Cechs continued efforts to claim the kingship of Tara suggest that his physical blemish, his loss of face in a quite literal sense, did not relegate him to the wings of the political stage. The violent deaths of Suibne Menn and Mel Coba, who were probably both killed in ambushes, also suggest that a claimants acquisition of kingship did not mean that other eligible dynasts, from their own or other dynasties, would lie down and accept the new status quo as they saw it.We hear mostly of contests for power at the highest level, particularly for the kingship of Tara, but it is interesting to hypothesize that at the level of the tath, similar ruthlessness may have been the norm as well. The demands of royal succession at all levels may have served to prune the family tree of each kinship group on a regular basis.To be a king, or even a strong candidate for kingship, in medieval Ireland, was to dramatically increase your chance of a sword in the back or a spear in the belly. Despite their ability to win hearts and minds, neither clever historiographical airbrushing nor feasts amid crumbling hilltop ruins could turn aside the reality of a land full of claimants who could become king by the strength of their sword arm and their capacity for ruthlessness and cunning, even if they could not remain so for long.

For four years, 343 Industries, now known as Halo Studios, has entertained millions of players worldwide with Halo Infinite's multiplayer and campaign as the developer's third mainline entry in the Halo series.

Beef at a grocery store in Elkridge, Md., on Oct. 24, 2025. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch TimesThe Department of Justice (DOJ) is investigating major meatpacking companies following allegations of price manipulation

Your donations help us purchase content, pay for servers, and reduce advertising. CLICK HERE to help out or to see what we do with the money.Current Fundraising for November:.thermometer_svg{} .therm_target{font-size:

The logo of Honda Motor Co. is seen in Yokohama, Japan, on Dec. 15, 2021. Koji Sasahara/AP PhotoAmerican Honda Motor Co. said it will recall 406,290 Honda Civics made between 2016 and 2021 due to a potential

The logo for Capital One Financial is displayed above a trading post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on July 30, 2019. Richard Drew/AP PhotoA federal judge of the U.S. District Court for the

[View Article at Source]WASHINGTON, D.C. Hungarian officials have reportedly offered White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt the newly created position of Minister of Truth Bombs, sources have