A Story from the Ulster Cycle

The stories of the Ulster Cycle originated about 2,000 years ago and retold for centuries thereafter. They were first written down in the 8th Century. These stories tell of the exploits of the Red Branch – a group of warriors pledged to defend Ulster during time Connor was king of Ulster. The most well-known of these warriors is Cu Chulainn (Coo- HULL-an).

I’m going to tell you one of the stories in the Ulster Cycle. It is the story of Bricrui’s (BRICK-roo’s) Feast. Actually, I’m not going to tell you the entire story. In point of fact, I’m not even going to tell you the story. I’m only going to tell you the setup for the real story.

The real story is quite bawdy and risqué. It involves a challenge, which as circumstances evolved, turned into many challenges. The Red Branch warriors faced the real and the supernatural. The warriors fought giants, ferocious cats, conniving women, foes who could not be killed, to mention some. All to determine which, among them, was the champion of the Red Branch.

It is an epic tale. A good seanchai in ancient times could hold his audience spellbound for hours telling this tale.

As wonderful as this story is, I’ve always been more fascinated in the setup. Why would three warriors embark upon such a quest? And why would the king of Ulster send his three best warriors on a fruitless mission, knowing the likelihood that only one would return?

Those are the questions which will be answered, in what I call “Bricrui’s Feat Part 1”.

I first told this story at the Rocky Mountain Irish Festival and told it many times since, including once in Ireland. I’m certain to tell the tale many times again. Here it is:

Image note: I originally intended to include this tale in Buy The Horse A Guinness, and I commissioned Rob Wilkinson to do the artwork for this story (as well as the others). I elected to omit Bricrui’s Feast from the book, but the artwork is at the top of this page.