Celtic Warfare - Mythological

Mythological

The Irish heroic cycles were committed to writing in the Mediaeval period, some time after the pre-Christian era they are supposed to depict. The Welsh Mabinogion dates from roughly the same era. The Táin Bó Cúailnge, chiefly the story of the Ulster hero Cú Chulainn describes individual combats centred on the use of the spear (gae) and javelin (gá-ín) with no mention of helmets or metal armour, in keeping with archaeological evidence. Chariots also play an important role, but there have so far been no finds of chariots resembling those of the Britons, leading to speculation that this may be an element added later under the influence of Homeric literature and/or that the chariots of the Irish were of the four wheeled variety, more accurately described as waggons, used purely for transportation. No remains of these vehicles from the period have yet been discovered.