The Conchobar Design

Here is a version of the story Conchobar's design from the Red Branch of the mythology Irish.

Conchobar's design

There was in Ulster an illustrious king, Eochaid with the yellow heel, son of Loeg, a daughter was born to him. Twelve guardians were commissioned to bring him up. Her name was Easy, because she was easy and gentle to raise.

At that time came from the South a champion named Cathba. He was originally from Ulster, although he lived in the South. Besides being a warrior and champion, he was also a man of great wisdom, a druid and a man of great learning. He had three novenas of men on his expedition. In a desert, he met another champion with three other novenas, too.

They attacked each other first; then they made peace, for they did not succumb because they were equal in number. Cathba went before them, for he knew the country, and the twelve guardians of the girl are killed by him, as they were gathered to feast. No one escaped except the girl. It was not known who had killed them.

The girl is going to complain to her father. The latter said he could not avenge them, since he did not know who had killed them. So she got angry and went on an expedition with three novenas of men to avenge her guardians. It struck and devastated successively all countries. Until then it was called Easy. From then on Difficult was his name in the tribes because of the harshness of his weapons and his bravery. She used to ask the story of the champion of every stranger she met to see if he knew the misfortune that had befallen them.

Once she was in another desert; his people were preparing their food. She goes alone except then; she saw beautiful pure water before her; she takes off her weapons and her clothes and bathes in them. Another expedition took place; it was Cathba and his family. He stood between her and her weapons and drew his sword against her.

 Give me my life, said the girl.

- Give me my three requests, said Cathba.

"You'll get them," she said. What is your choice ?

- Safety for me, your friendship, and that you are my wife as long as I am alive.

- It is understood, she said.

- Now our alliance is over. Said the other champion to Cathba, and he went his way.

Cathba went with her to her father. They were welcomed and Cathba was given land in Ulster: Cathba Fort in Cremthinne, near Conor Creek which is in Ross territory. One night, Cathba was very thirsty. His wife went to get him a drink. She did not find any in the castle.

So she went to the Conor, filtered the water through her veil into the cup and brought it to him. Turn us on, he said, to see if there is any beast in the water. Light was brought to them and they saw two worms in it. He drew his sword against the woman: "So drink, you," he said, "what you have offered me." The woman took two sips and with each sip she swallowed a worm. She got fat ...

Cathba then went with his wife to talk to Eochaid at the yellow heel. They were in the plain of Murthemné. The pains took the woman on the way. »If it is in your power, said Cathba, not to bring your child into the world until that night, your son will be king and his name will be among the men of Ireland. There will be born this night in the east of the earth a child who will be above the men of the world, Jesus Christ.

'I will,' the woman said, 'unless he comes out by my side. Let's go to the Plaine-Ile “.

She stood on a flat stone at Plaine-ile, in front of the Fortress au-Côté-Vert…; this is where Conor was born. The stone on which he was born and the grave are still there, and when he was born he had a worm in each fist, the ones his mother had drunk in the water of the Conor. He was given the name Conor after the Conor stream, but it was in the Plain Island that he was born, as we have said.

He obtained the royalty of the province because of the rank of his mother, the art and science of his father and because of his own great bravery and his skill in arms, so that he was not an illustrious king . The victory over Ailill and Mève was won by him at the Razzia de Cualngé.

And yet this is not how it is told in others books the birth of Conor, but in this way: Nessa, daughter of Eochaid Salbuide, was on her throne outside at Emain and her royal daughters around her. Druid Cathba passed her. He was from Plaine-Ile, according to others. The girl said to him, “What good is this moment? she says

– He is good at making a king out of a queen. said the druid. The girl asked if it was true. The druid swore to his gods that it was true; the name of the son who would be made at this time would live in Ireland until Judgment. Then the girl invited him to approach her, because she saw no other man in her vicinity. Then Nessa became pregnant and the child was in her womb three years and three months. It was at the Feast of Uthar son of Fordub that she became pregnant.