Seven Against Thebes in the Mournes: Reading mythology in a late-medieval Irish saga

Join leading Classics scholar Professor Michael Clarke for a fascinating talk on the Early Modern Irish heroic saga Caithréim Conghail Cláiringnigh, ‘The Martial Career of Conghal Cláiringneach’, found in a seventeenth-century manuscript but incorporating older materials.

The events of the saga supposedly take place in Ireland and the distant Otherworld in the early first century BC. The saga tells how Ulster was ruined by a system of divided kingship imposed by the High King at Tara, leading to civil war and ultimately to an invasion of Ulster by Conghal himself, one of the claimants to the kingship.

Professor Clarke will explore the ways in which the Caithréim tale draws on the ancient Greek legend of the ‘Seven Against Thebes’ – seven champions in Greek mythology who made war on Thebes – which is also alluded to in early Irish sagas such as Togail na Téibhe, ‘The Siege of Thebes’ (c. 1100 AD).

Michael Clarke is Established Professor of Classics at the University of Galway and works on language and myth in Antiquity and medieval Ireland. He has published extensively on the transformation of the Classical tradition in Irish medieval language and literature, and he is the author of two books: Flesh and Spirit in the Songs of Homer: a Study of Words and Myths (OUP, 1999) and Achilles Beside Gilgamesh: Mortality and Wisdom in Early Epic Poetry (CUP, 2019).

This event is held in partnership with Classical Association in Northern Ireland

The mission of the Classical Association in Northern Ireland centres on the advancement of Ancient History and Classical Studies, nurturing educational pursuits across Northern Ireland. The Association in Northern Ireland regained momentum during the conclusion of the 2014 Summer School, orchestrated by the Classical Association of Ireland.

Situated in Belfast, this branch operates under the umbrella of The Classical Association of Ireland. Their unwavering commitment to fostering Ancient History and the Classics is symbolized by an emblem—a stylized hound, emblematic of guardianship. The hound’s prominence in mosaic artworks adorning the entrances of Roman residences and its recurrent presence in early Irish Latin manuscripts underscores their dedication. The narratives interweaving hounds are a recurring motif in Northern Ireland’s earliest oral and written traditions.