167
Morrigan signals Cúchulainn’s
death. The vibrant mosaic of the Tain
Wall in Dublin by Desmond Kinney
(1974) depicts scenes from the tale.See also: The quest of Odysseus 66–71 ■ Aeneas, founder of Rome 96–101 ■
A complex god 164 ■ King Arthur 172–77EUROPE
victorious but exhausted. He was
unable to go on. The Ulster warriors
then woke from the spell that had
laid them low and forced Medb and
her troops to retreat.The death of Cúchulainn
Despite losing in battle, Medb
managed to capture Dun, the
Brown Bull of Cooley. The two bulls
were then set against each other
and Ailill’s white-horned bull was
killed. Mortally wounded, Dun
found his way back to Cooley but
died when he got there. Medb’s
pursuit had caused carnage and
death throughout the kingdom, yet
she could not accept defeat. She
convinced the sons of those slain
by Cúchulainn to seek revenge.
Among them was Lugaid, the king
of Munster, whose father hadperished in the battle. The men
conspired to kill Cúchulainn and
Lugaid threw the fatal spear.
Cúchulainn washed his wound
and drank water in a nearby lake.
Barely able to stand, but refusing to
die lying down like an animal, he
tied himself to a standing stone
and then died. His enemies feared
him too much to get close enough
to see if he was still alive. Three
days later, the goddess Morrigan
appeared as a raven—a Celtic
symbol of death—on Cúchulainn’s
shoulder, confirming he was dead.A hero’s legacy
The fact that Cúchulainn’s story
is still widely told to this day is
testimony to the Irish people’s
empathy with their hero. During
the 20th century, he came to
represent defiance in the face of
British rule. Ulster unionists,
however, prefer to focus on his
defense of the province of Ulster
from enemies to the south. ■The Hound of Chulainn
Originally named Sétanta,
Cúchulainn was the nephew
of King Conor of Ulster and
possibly the son of the sky god
Lugh. He earned his new
name when, as a boy, he
attended a banquet with his
uncle at the house of the
blacksmith Chulainn.
Having lagged behind on
the way to the banquet, when
he finally arrived at the house,
Sétanta found himself facing
Chulainn’s ferocious guard
dog. When it attacked him,
Sétanta killed the hound in
self-defense. To make amends
to Chulainn, Sétanta promised
to take the dog’s place as
protector of the Kingdom of
Ulster. He then became known
as the “Cú Chulainn” (“Hound
of Chulainn”).
Cúchulainn was a truly
formidable foe, but his skills
as a warrior eventually led
to his undoing. Before he
married, a Scottish woman,
Aife, bore him a son in secret.
Years later, a young man
appeared and challenged
Cúchulainn. Only after
defeating the stranger did
Cúchulainn realize he had
killed his own son. Distraught,
he was a broken man when he
met his death at the hands of
Lugaid, the king of Munster.US_166-167_Cuchulain.indd 167 05/12/17 3:00 pm