Gaelic warfare

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Irish gallowglass and kern. Drawing by Albrecht Dürer, 1521.

Gaelic warfare was the type of

warfare practiced by the Gaelic peoples (the Irish, Scottish, and Manx
), in the pre-modern period.

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Indigenous Gaelic warfare

Weaponry

Irish warfare was for centuries centered on the Ceithearn, or

lord-lieutenant of Ireland
, described the kerns as:

"... A kind of footman, slightly armed with a sword, a target (round shield) of wood, or a bow and sheaf of arrows with barbed heads, or else three darts, which they cast with a wonderful facility and nearness..."[1]

For centuries the backbone of any Gaelic Irish army were these lightly armed foot soldiers. Ceithearn were usually armed with a spear (gae) or sword (claideamh), long dagger (scian),[2] bow (bogha) and a set of javelins, or darts (gá-ín).[3]

The use of

Men-at-arms and Knights. Although the Irish did have knights heavily armored soldiers prior to the gallowglass these were called Ridire in Irish meaning knight as mentioned in the Visio Tnugdali

These adaptations and developments brought regular use of other weapons such as

sparth axe and swords like the arming sword and two-handed swords similar to the Scottish Claymore
. Many of the medieval swords found in Ireland today are unlikely to be of native manufacture given many of the pommels and cross-guard decoration is not of Gaelic origin.[4]

Brian Bóruma leading his army on the morning of the Battle of Clontarf.

By the time of

king's mensal land. These were well-trained and equipped professional soldiers made up of infantry and cavalry.[5]

Aside from

chieftain and his clan. They usually rode without saddles but wore armour and iron helmets and wielded swords, skenes and long spears or lances.[6] A fully outfitted medieval Irish army would have included light infantry, heavy infantry and mixed cavalry.[7]

Gaelic Warfare was anything but stagnant and was adaptive and ever changing. By the time of the

warfare, including full reliance on firearms and modern military tactics.[8]

Gaelic raid culture

Cú Chulainn in Battle, illustration by J. C. Leyendecker in T. W. Rolleston's Myths & Legends of the Celtic Race, 1911. An artistic depiction of Iron Age Chariot warfare, though archaeological evidence of chariots have not been found in Ireland.[9]

The Gaelic Irish preferred hit-and-run tactics and shock tactics like ambushes and raids (the crech), which involved catching the enemy unaware. One of the most common causes of conflict in Gaelic Ireland was cattle raiding. Cattle were the main form of wealth in Gaelic Ireland, as it was in many parts of Europe, as currency had not yet been introduced, and the aim of most wars was the capture of the enemy's cattle. If this worked, the raiders would then seize any valuables (mainly livestock) and potentially valuable hostages, burn the crops, and escape.[10]

Indeed,

Gaelic term creach rígh, or "king's raid", was used to describe the event, implying it was a customary tradition.[11]

The cattle raid was often called a

Gaelic literature and culture, with the Táin Bó Cúailnge and Táin Bó Flidhais
as important examples. Gaelic warfare was
anything but static, as Gaelic soldiers frequently looted
or bought the newest and most effective weaponry. Although hit-and-run raiding was the preferred Gaelic tactic in
medieval times, there were also pitched battles
to settle larger disputes.

Especially

dynastic line and developed a distinct culture
of their own.

Armour

Irish round shield.

It's often stated that for the most part, the Gaelic Irish fought without armour, instead wearing saffron coloured belted

Anglo-Saxons, Vikings and Normans. A few shields were also oval in shape or square, but most of the native shields were small and round, like bucklers
, to better enable agility and a quick escape.

Customs

Ulster cycle of Irish mythology. Illustration by Stephen Reid from Eleanor Hull
's The Boys' Cuchulain, 1904.

new forms of technology, culture, warfare and settlements
to Ireland.

Before the

ritual combat
. Another very important aspect of Gaelic ritual warfare at this time was single combat. In order to settle a dispute or merely to measure one's prowess, it was customary to challenge another individual warrior from the other army to ritual single combat to the death, while being cheered on by the opposing hosts.

Ulster cycle with Cú Chulainn and the Táin Bó Cúailnge, where the hero from Ulster defeats an entire army from Connacht one by one. Such single combats were common before a pitched battle, and for ritual purposes they tended to occur at river fords
.

The spirit and traditions of single combat would live on and manifest itself in other ways in Modern Gaelic cultures. In

Scottish Martial Arts like the dueling
of the 18th century. Where the victor was determined by who made the first-cut. However, this was not always observed, and at times the duel would continue to the death. In
stick fighting (Bataireacht) and scuffling (Coiléar agus Uille)
.

Urban defense

Main article: Gaelic Ireland § Settlements and architecture
An example of a Gaelic Irish stone ringfort. Grianan of Aileach (see inside)

Many of the towns in Gaelic Ireland had some type of defense in the form of walls or ditches. For most of the Gaelic period, dwellings and buildings were

Irish round towers
were built after this period.

castles
and towers such as this.

Following the

ringforts.[18] Within Gaelic Ireland, many of the areas conquered by Anglo-Normans often had defense walls due to the frontier type of lifestyle. Some had these walls built assuming that the town had no adequate defense with only using a ditch. The masonry walls on some towns had not been completed due to the economics of the time. While many of the towns often constructed what looks to be a defensive walls, this can sometimes not be the case. Towns constructed walls and town gates at times as merely a symbol of lordly wealth; or as a physical expression of power, the defensive aspects of some of these walls and gates would become a secondary role.[19]

By the 12th century, "some mottes, especially in frontier areas, had almost certainly been built by the Gaelic Irish in imitation" of the Normans.[20] The

tower houses.[21] Square and rectangle-shaped buildings gradually became more common, and by the 14th or 15th century they had replaced round buildings completely.[22]

The Rock of Cashel, the citadel in which the defenders attempted to hold off the assault during the Sack of Cashel.

Starting in the late 16th century, an era of

Siege warfare began in Ireland. During this period, urban defense came to the forefront of Gaelic warfare and became increasingly important. Following shocking atrocities at the Sack of Cashel and Oliver Cromwell’s Siege and massacre at Drogheda
. Gaelic Irish rebels, realizing that they could not expect or trust any quarter to be given upon surrender, began to improvise and set traps for armies besieging their towns.

At both the

killing field just inside the walls. In both instances, Irish defenders were able to compel the superior English forces into granting surrender agreements with generous terms through heavy fighting and attrition to the besieging armies.[25][26]

Tactics and organisation

A raid depicted in The Image of Irelande (1581). Ceithearn or Kern made up the bulk of Gaelic armies, as levied light infantrymen. Note the Bagpiper leading the troops.

Initially Kern or ceithern were members of individual tribes, but later, when the Vikings and English came to Ireland, they introduced new systems of billeting soldiers, the kern became billeted soldiers and mercenaries who served the highest bidder. Because Kern were equipped and trained as light skirmishers, they faced a severe disadvantage in pitched battle. In battle, the kern and lightly armed horsemen would charge the enemy line after intimidating them with shock tactics, war cries, horns and pipes.[27]

If the kern failed to break an enemy line after the charge, they were liable to flee. If the enemy formation did not break under the kern's charge, then heavily armed and armoured Irish soldiers were moved forward and would advance from the rear lines and attack, these units were replaced in the late 13th century by the

mercenaries but by the 15th century most large túatha in Ireland had fostered and developed their own hereditary forces of Gallowglass. The primary function of Gaelic Heavy infantry was so lighter combatants such as Kern and Hobelars caught in thick fighting could strike, break free, re-group and tactically retreat behind the newly formed battle line
if they needed to.

By the time of

hit and run tactics, often in ambushes against enemy columns on the march.[28]

Adaptations

A map of the early Irish raids and colonies of Britain during and following Roman rule in Britain.

As time went on, the Gaels

Javelins and slings became more uncommon, as they required too much space to launch, which the small currachs did not allow. Instead, more and more Gaels were armed with bows and arrows
.

The Dál Riata, for example, after colonizing the west of Scotland and becoming a maritime power, became an army composed completely of archers. Slings also went out of use, replaced by both bows and a very effective naval weapon called the crann tabhaill, a kind of catapult.

Later, when the

Norse shields
and heavy mail-coats possible.

Heavier hacking-swords and

foreign soldiers
", and formed an important part of Gaelic armies in the future.

The

cavalry in order to effectively deal with the mail-clad Normans
.

During the

Hastings
.

The Scottish rebels

Andrew de Moray, William Wallace and Scottish King Robert the Bruce can all be credited with the development of the Schiltron as a counter to the Normans and their early use of combined arms
warfare. English Chroniclers of the era said of the warriors in the Schiltrons:

A depiction of Robert the Bruce directing his men on the field at the Battle of Bannockburn from Cassell's Illustrated History of England.

the campaign but he died shortly after sustaining a mortal injury at the Battle of Stirling Bridge.[31][32]

In early engagements, like when Schiltrons were used by

Pike Square of continental fame). With these tight mobile formations and adequate cavalry support. The Scots were able to use this innovative adaptation to pin the English heavy horse against the Bannockburn on the second day of the Battle of Bannockburn and routed the army of Edward II of England paving the way for eventual Scottish Independence
.

Standards and music

Main article:
Great Irish Warpipes
A Bagpiper as depicted in The Image of Irelande (1581).

Many Gaelic clans each had their own distinct

Great Highland Bagpipe
playing important roles in the culture of their respective nations.

Exported Gaelic warfare

Gallowglass

Main article: Gallowglass
Fifteenth-century sculpted figures of Gallowglasses,[33] as depicted upon the apparent effigy of Feidhlimidh Ó Conchobhair, King of Connacht[34] and father of Áed na nGall, victor of the Battle of Connacht.

The most prolific

mercenaries who came from the Hebrides and the Isles. They appeared in Ireland in the 13th century, following the Wars of Scottish Independence and the Bruce campaign but by the 15th century most large túatha had their own hereditary force of Gallowglass.[35] They fought and trained in a combination of Gaelic and Norse techniques, and were highly valued; they were hired throughout the British Isles at different times, though most famously in Ireland
.

Norse-Gaelic Chieftain from Clan MacDonald wearing Mail and wielding a Claymore as depicted by R.R. McIan

One of the first battles believed to have to included Gallowglass was the

Sparth axes, Lochaber axes, Longswords, Claymores and sometimes spears or lances. These Gallóglaigh furnished the retreating Gaels with a "moving line of defense from which the horsemen could make short, sharp charges, and behind which they could retreat when pursued". Their heavy armour made them less nimble than kern, so they were sometimes placed at strategic spots along the line of retreat.[37]

Gallowglasses were frequently hired and served as

Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden in his invasion of Livonia during the Thirty Years' War
. Gallowglass later became a caste of warrior rather than a indicator of a norse gaelic origin, with Irish Gallowglass clans producing their own.

Despite the increased usage of

Battle of Kinsale
in 1601, the recruitment of the heavily armoured warriors finally waned.

Hobelars

Main article: Hobelar

Hobelars were a mounted, highly mobile skirmisher unit. Some were mounted archers, some were merely light cavalry. These Gaelic horsemen were utilitarian and could fill multiple roles on the battlefield, including as mobile skirmisher infantry used to outmaneuver enemy units or that of skirmisher cavalry, used for quick and abrupt attacks
.

A Connemara pony, modern descendant of the Irish Hobby Horse which was used for skirmishing and light cavalry.

Early Hobelars wore little armour, they typically rode on smaller quicker unarmoured

Men-at-arms rode. Hobelars would typically dismount to fight, harry their opponents and then utilize their mounts as a quick getaway. As time went on, Hobelars began to be utilized for more and more cavalry tasks and functions.[38]

During his

hobbies to Scotland in order to gain an advantage in the conflict.[39]
Hobelars were highly proficient at
and beyond
, the skirmisher cavalry were a well-known and highly valued as a light and mobile unit.

After the successful and effective deployment of these horsemen by both the English and Scottish during the

armoured and less distinguishable from other cavalry units.[43]

Border reiver
.

In Scotland, Hobelars served as the offensive arm of castle garrisons. Hobelars were utilized as raiders across the border by both the English and Scots, they can be viewed as early predecessors to the reivers and moss-troopers of the Scottish borderlands.[44]

Later Weaponry

two-handed sword favored by both Scottish Highlanders and the Gallowglass
in Ireland.

During the

Europe influenced Gaelic weapon design. Take for example the German Zweihänder sword, a long double-handed weapon used for quick, powerful cuts and thrusts. Irish swords were copied from these models, which had unique furnishings. Many, for example, often featured open rings on the pommel. On any locally designed Irish sword in the Middle Ages, this meant you could see the end of the tang go through the pommel and cap the end. These swords were often of very fine construction and quality. Scottish swords continued to use the more traditional "V" cross-guards that had been on pre-Norse Gaelic swords, culminating in such pieces as the now famous "claymore" design. This was an outgrowth of numerous earlier designs, and has become a symbol of Scotland. The claymore was used together with the typical axes of the Gallowglass until the 18th century, but began to be replaced by pistols, muskets and basket-hilted swords
, which were shorter versions of the claymore which were used with one hand in conjunction with a shield. These basket-hilted broadswords are still a symbol of Scotland to this day, as is the typical small round shield known as a "targe."

Redshanks

Main article: Redshank (soldier)
Gaelic clans and nobility to fight the English crown in the Tudor conquest and Confederate Wars.

plaids and waded bare-legged through rivers in the coldest weather. The term was not derogatory however, as the English were in general impressed with the redshanks' qualities as soldiers.[45]

the Thirty Years War
.

The redshanks were usually armed alike, principally with

claymores, battle axes or Lochaber axes. English observers reported that some Highlanders fighting in Ireland wore chain mail, long obsolete elsewhere.[46]

Later in the period, they may have adopted the

muskets, this could have influenced the development of what was later referred to as the "highland charge", a tactic of firing a single coordinated musket volley before closing at a run with sword and targe.[48] Many Gaelic clan levies, called Caterans
, would have remained relatively poorly armed.

Highland Charge at the Battle of Culloden
in 1746.

By the mid-17th century, a large number of

Irish Confederate Wars, notably the clansmen serving under Alasdair Mac Colla, himself a member of a minor Hebridean branch of Clan Donald (a cadet family of Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg).[49] However, the Highlanders who fought at the Battle of Dungan's Hill and Battle of Knocknanuss were to be the last of the redshanks.[50]

The subsequent

mercenaries through the destruction of their employers, the Gaelic nobility and by the pacification of the Scottish Gaels with the Statutes of Iona and the Highland clearances
.

List of Gaelic conflicts and battles

This is a list of battles or conflicts in which the Gaels had a leading or crucial role.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Fergus Cannan, 'HAGS OF HELL': Late Medieval Irish Kern. History Ireland , Vol. 19, No. 1 (January/February 2011), pp. 14–17
  2. ^ Sgian-dubh
  3. ^ 'HAGS OF HELL': Late Medieval Irish Kern. History Ireland , Vol. 19, No. 1 (January/February 2011), pp. 17
  4. JSTOR 25506140
    .
  5. ^ Duffy, Seán, ed. (2005). Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. pp. 54–55. ISBN 978-1-135-94824-5.
  6. ^ Ó Cléirigh, Cormac (1997). Irish frontier warfare: a fifteenth-century case study (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 December 2010.
  7. ^ Flanagan, Marie Therese (1996). "Warfare in Twelfth-Century Ireland". A Military History of Ireland. Cambridge University Press. pp. 52–75.
  8. ^ G. A. Hayes-McCoy, "Strategy and Tactics in Irish Warfare, 1593–1601." Irish Historical Studies , Vol. 2, No. 7 (Mar. 1941), pp. 255
  9. ISBN 0-521-02014-X
  10. ^ Ó Cléirigh, Cormac (1997). Irish frontier warfare: a fifteenth-century case study (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 December 2010.
  11. ^ Shae Clancy. "Cattle in Early Ireland". Celtic Well. Archived from the original on 17 October 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  12. ^ The Topography of Ireland by Giraldus Cambrensis Archived 17 June 2016 at the Wayback Machine (English translation)
  13. ^ Joyce, Patrick Weston (1906). "Chapter XVI: The House, Construction, Shape, and Size". A Smaller Social History of Ancient Ireland. Library Ireland. Archived from the original on 17 April 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  14. ^ Connolly, Sean J (2007). "Chapter 2: Late Medieval Ireland: The Irish". Contested island: Ireland 1460–1630. Oxford University Press. pp. 20–24.
  15. ^ Connolly, Sean J (2007). "Chapter 2: Late Medieval Ireland: The Irish". Contested island: Ireland 1460–1630. Oxford University Press. pp. 20–24.
  16. ^ O'Keeffe, Tadhg (1995). Rural settlement and cultural identity in Gaelic Ireland (PDF). Ruralia 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 June 2010. Retrieved 17 November 2010.
  17. ^ Glasscock, Robin Edgar (2008) [1987]. "Chapter 8: Land and people, c.1300". In Cosgrove, Art (ed.). A New History of Ireland, Volume II: Medieval Ireland 1169–1534. Oxford University Press. pp. 205–239. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199539703.003.0009.
  18. ^ O'Keeffe, Tadhg (1995). Rural settlement and cultural identity in Gaelic Ireland (PDF). Ruralia 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 June 2010. Retrieved 17 November 2010.
  19. ^ McKeon, Jim (2011). "Urban Defences in Anglo-Norman Ireland: Evidence from South Connacht". Eolas: The Journal of the American Society of Irish Medieval Studies. 5: 146–190. JSTOR 41585270.
  20. ^ Glasscock, Robin Edgar (2008) [1987]. "Chapter 8: Land and people, c.1300". In Cosgrove, Art (ed.). A New History of Ireland, Volume II: Medieval Ireland 1169–1534. Oxford University Press. pp. 205–239. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199539703.003.0009.
  21. ^ Glasscock, Robin Edgar (2008) [1987]. "Chapter 8: Land and people, c.1300". In Cosgrove, Art (ed.). A New History of Ireland, Volume II: Medieval Ireland 1169–1534. Oxford University Press. pp. 205–239. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199539703.003.0009.
  22. ^ Joyce, Patrick Weston (1906). "Chapter XVI: The House, Construction, Shape, and Size". A Smaller Social History of Ancient Ireland. Library Ireland. Archived from the original on 17 April 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  23. ^ Plant, David (28 February 2008). "The Siege of Clonmel, 1650". BCW Project. David Plant. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
  24. ^ Manning, Roger (2000). An Apprenticeship in Arms: The Origins of the British Army 1585-1702. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  25. ^ Wheeler, James Scott (1999). Cromwell in Ireland. Dublin: Gill & Macmillan. ISBN 0-7171-2884-9.
  26. ^ "Clonmel: Its Monastery, and Siege by Cromwell". Duffy's Hibernian Magazine. III (14). August 1861. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
  27. ^ Fergus Cannan, 'HAGS OF HELL': Late Medieval Irish Kern. History Ireland , Vol. 19, No. 1 (January/February 2011), pp. 17
  28. ^ G. A. Hayes-McCoy, "Strategy and Tactics in Irish Warfare, 1593–1601." Irish Historical Studies , Vol. 2, No. 7 (Mar. 1941), pp. 255
  29. ^ Trokelowe, quoted in Brown, op.cit, p. 90
  30. ^ Vita Edwardi Secundi, quoted in Brown, Chris (2008). Bannockburn 1314. Stroud: History press. p. 78. ISBN 978-0-7524-4600-4.
  31. ISBN 9781906566241
    .
  32. ISBN 9781906566241
    .
  33. ^ Halpin; Newman (2006) p. 244; Simms (1998) p. 78; Simms (1997) pp. 111 fig. 5.3, 114 fig. 5.6; Halpin (1986) p. 205; Crawford, HS (1924).
  34. ^ Halpin; Newman (2006) p. 244; Verstraten (2002) p. 11; Crawford, HS (1924).
  35. ^ Ó Cléirigh, Cormac (1997). Irish frontier warfare: a fifteenth-century case study (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 December 2010.
  36. ^ Duffy. The World of the Galloglass: Kings, Warlords and Warriors in Ireland and Scotland, 1200–1600. 2007 p. 1.
  37. ^ Ó Cléirigh, Cormac (1997). Irish frontier warfare: a fifteenth-century case study (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 December 2010.
  38. ^ The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1, Page 267-268, Hobelars
  39. ^ Hyland (1998), p 32, 14, 37
  40. ^ The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1, Page 267-268,Hobelars
  41. ^ Hyland (1998), p 32, 14, 37
  42. ^ Lydon (1954)
  43. ^ The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1, Page 267-268, Hobelars
  44. ^ The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology, Volume 1, Page 267-268, Hobelars
  45. ^ Falls, Elizabeth's Irish Wars, p.79
  46. ^ Fforde, The Great Glen, 2011
  47. ^ Stevenson, Alasdair MacColla and the Highland Problem in the Seventeenth Century, 1980, p.83
  48. ^ Stevenson, Scottish Covenanters and Irish Confederates, 1981, p.4
  49. ^ Hill, James Michael, Celtic warfare, 1595–1763 (2003),J. Donald
  50. ^ Carlton, Charles (2002). Going to the Wars: The Experience of the British Civil Wars 1638–1651. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-84935-2., page 135

References

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