Partholon’s Exile and Journey to Ireland

Partholon, a giant of a man, lived in Greece but was cursed after committing the grave sin of killing a family member during a war of succession. The curse ensured that nothing he attempted would ever succeed. Seeking to outrun this curse, Partholon gathered his wife, three sons, their families, and retainers and set sail for Ireland.

When they arrived, they found Ireland a wild and desolate place with only one fertile plain, located where Dublin stands today. Over time, Partholon’s people cultivated the land, creating three additional fertile plains in other parts of the island, setting up agriculture and industry, and exploring Ireland’s length and breadth.

The Encounter with the Fomorians

While exploring Donegal, Partholon’s people encountered the Fomorians, a fearsome race of sea pirates with powerful magic, who lived on Tory Island. Conflict arose, as the two groups could not coexist peacefully.

The battle between the Partholonians and the Fomorians was magical rather than physical. The warriors accessed the Otherworld’s power by adopting the “stance of power,” standing on one leg, with one arm behind their back and one eye closed. In the end, Partholon’s people triumphed, and as a sign of their acceptance by the land, four great lakes burst forth across Ireland.

Fintan Mac Bóchra’s Counsel

During this time, Fintan Mac Bóchra, the immortal shapeshifter, appeared and became an advisor to Partholon’s people. With his vast knowledge, gained from living as a man, a salmon, and a hawk, Fintan guided them on how to survive and thrive in Ireland.

Tragedy in Partholon’s Court

One day, while Partholon was away hunting, his wife and a servant shared a moment of betrayal—they slept together and drank from Partholon’s cup. Upon returning, Partholon drank from the same cup and immediately tasted their infidelity. In a fit of rage, he killed the servant, marking the first instance of adultery, jealousy, and murder in Ireland.

Partholon’s wife, unfazed by his anger, simply responded with wisdom: “Honey with a woman, milk with a cat, food with a host, meat with a boy, one with one earns great risk.” Remarkably, they continued to live together peacefully for another 30 years.

The Plague and the Curse Fulfilled

After many years of prosperity, Partholon died, and his people flourished, reaching a population of 9,000. However, the curse on Partholon finally took its toll. In a single week, a devastating plague swept through Ireland, wiping out all of Partholon’s people.

Fintan’s Survival

Only Fintan Mac Bóchra survived, thanks to his magical ability to transform into animals. He returned to the wild, awaiting the arrival of the next settlers in Ireland.

Legacy of Partholon

Partholon’s story is a tale of resilience, betrayal, and the inescapable nature of curses. His people’s efforts to tame Ireland and their ultimate destruction mark the beginning of the island’s mythological history.

The land of Ireland lay empty after Parthalon’s passing for thirty years before another group of people arrived, led by Nemed, who was a distant relative of Parthalon’s.  These people made huge change to the landscape clearing twelve plains and firmly marking their presence on the land.  Nemed had set out with thirty four ships, each crewed by thirty over a year previously.

Near the start of their voyage, the Nemedians came upon a tower of gold jutting up out of the sea, covered by sea water at high tide and laid bare by the sun’s rays at a low ebb, they were inflamed by greed at the sight of it and assaulted the Tower of Gold.  So intent were the Nemedians in taking the tower they did not notice as the sea began to rise around them sweeping their boats away and through their greed and inattention all but one ship was lost and most of Nemed’s men were drowned.   he managed to get all of the women on to the remaining ship however and arrived in Ireland with his four sons and a good host.  When they arrived four new lakes burst forth as a sign of their welcome.  Nemed’s wife, Macha, was the first of his company to die in Ireland and was buried in a place called Ard Macha, after her.  Nemed and his people had to fight against the Formorians just as Parthalon had but these were not bloodless, magical battles.  The Nemedians fought fiercely and slaughtered two great Formorian kings, Gann and Sengannn.  The Formorians were so enraged by this that they attacked the Nemedians on two later occasions and though Nemed and his people won both battles, the losses were heavy and the hatred on both sides only grew.

As well as the great work of clearing twelve plains, the Nemedians’ built two royal forts, setting in place foundations and structures that were vital for the enduring wellbeing of the people. One fort was built by Nemed’s people and the other by four Formorian brothers who dug the whole royal fort in one day but before the sun rose the next day, Nemed killed the four brothers so that they would not improve upon the fort that they had built for him.

Nemed’s people thrived in Ireland for many years but a plague came upon them and killed two thousand of their number with Nemed himself among the dead.  The Formorians saw their chance to strike at the Nemedians while they were weakened by this tragedy and took over Ireland making it a vassal state and imposing huge taxes on the people.  Two thirds of their corn, their milk and their children had to be delivered every year on Samhain to the Formorians, who were led by two kings, Morc and Conand.   The anger and sorrow grew in the hearts of the Nemedians until they could bear it no longer and gathered together to attack the Formorians.  With thirty thousand at sea and thirty thousand in ships they assaulted the Tower of Conand  on Tory Island and took it by force.   But Morc arrived with reinforcements and the magic of the Formorians caused the sea to rise.  Distracted by their battle fury the Nemedians did not notice the water rising and almost all of them were swept away and drowned.    A few survivors managed to escape on the last ship.  They split up going their separate ways.  A few returned to Ireland but the plague finished them off.  Though the women lived on a few decades longer than  the men.  A small group of them went into the north of the World where they found great wonders.  A second group led by Nemed’s son, Fergus Redside and his son, Britton Wayle went to Scotland and Britton Waye faired so well there, that the whole island was named after him.  The final group, led by Nemed’s grandson, Simeon, went to Greece where they were captured and enslaved, living under great hardship for many years.

Ireland was left empty for 200 years after the Nemedians were scattered.  The survivors of the Nemedian attack on Conand’s Tower who fled to Greece following Semeon, faired very badly there.  There were enslaved for 200 years and made to labour long hours under the hot sun, carrying heavy sacks of clay on their backs.  Their task was to carry the clay to rough mountain peaks until the mountains had such a covering that they became as flowery and fertile as the plains.  They became known as the Fir Bolg, which means the men of the sacks because of these sacks of clay that they were always hauling.

But the Fir Bolgs kept their spirits up by telling each other stories of Ireland, their birth right.  And at last the day came when they were able to escape.  They used the very same sacks that had been their burden to build canoes and coracles and fled from Greece.

The Fir Bolg fleet, such as it was, did not hold together on the voyage and the people landed at different times.  One group, led by the Chieftain Slanga, and his wife Etair, landed first on Saturday the 1^st August and then the Chieftains, Gann and Segann, landed on Tuesday with their wives and Oist and Fuath and all their followers and on Friday the last of the Fir Bolg arrived led by the Chieftains, Genann and Rudraige and their wives Liebar and Connacha.  They met together and decided that since they were all kin they would consider this the one taking of Ireland and not fight among themselves.  No lakes burst forth when they landed and they cleared no new plains nor had they to fight against the Formorians for dominion over Ireland.  They did decide to divide Ireland between these five chieftains and that was the first division of the provinces we still know today.

They named the Southern most province, Munster, and it became the land of poetry and music.  Leinster, in the East, was the land of prosperity and Connacht the land of wisdom, while in the North, the stony soil of Ulster bred strong men and women and became the land of warfare and strife.  In the centre, Meath was the province of the High King, which unified all the others with the seat of the Kings at Tara and the seat of the Druids at Uisneach.

The Fir Bolg ruled Ireland for thirty seven years and had nine kings in all that time. Their first high king of Ireland, Slainge, was the first person ever to be the King of all Ireland. But he only ruled for a year before dying of the plague.  The last king, Eochy, ruled for ten years and during his reign there was no wet except for the dew which fell at night and no year without harvest.  Falsehoods were expelled from Ireland and the law of justice was enacted for the first time, but at the end of thirty seven years, King Eochy was brought news, a new group of people had come to Ireland and they had burned their ships behind them on the beach. The Tuatha de Danann had arrived.