Mr. Petrie on the History and Antiquities of Tara Hill. 125 



caippib o pepaib ©pino pa bioba baip in ci and whoever of the men of Ireland refused to 

 no milleao in cana pm. attend those meetings, or violate this regulation, 



was considered an enemy unto death. 



The reign of Dermot is, however, most memorable, as that of the last 

 monarch who held his residence at Tara, as, according to all the ancient autho- 

 rities, it was abandoned after his death in 565, in consequence of the curse of 

 St. Ruadhan, the patron of Lorrah, in the County of Tipperary. This fact is 

 thus stated in an ancient Irish poem on the dates of the desertion of the palaces 

 of the different Irish kings : 



O peimiop Diapmaoa ouinn, From the reign of Diarmait, the brown [haired] 



TTlic pheapgupa, mic ClionuiU, Son of Fergus, son of Conall, 



O bpeicip Ruaoain oa roij From the judgment of Ruadhan on his house, 



Ni paiB pij a D-Ceampoij. There was no king at Temur. 



MS. Trin. Col. H. 1. 17, fol. 97, p. 2. 



The cause assigned by the poets and monkish chroniclers for the abandon- 

 ment and consequent ruin of this most ancient residence of the Irish kings, is, as 

 usual, of a somewhat legendary character. It is thus related in the Book of 

 Clonmacnoise, as translated by Connell Mac Geoghegan in 1627 : 



" King Dermott, to mak manifest unto his subjects of the kingdom his magnificence, apointed 

 a sergiant named Backlawe, with a speare, to travaile through the kingdom, with power to break 

 such doores of the nobilities as he should find narow in such manner as the speare could not enter 

 into the house thort wayes, or in the breadth of the doores. 



" The sargiant travaihng to and fro' with his directions, putting in execution the king's pleasure 

 in that behalfe, by breaking of either side of such doores as he could find unfitt for that purpose, 

 untill at last he came to the house of one Hugh Gwarey, in I maine in Connaught, where being 

 desired by those of the house to enter in the absence of the said Hugh, the sargiant said, he 

 could not bring in his speare as he ought. Noe, said they of the house, wee will break the doore 

 of either side, and make it in such manner as you may bring in your speare, as you desire, which 

 they accordingly did. The sargiant haveing the doore broken, entred and feasted with them ; 

 and soon after Hugh Gwarey came to the towen, and seeing his doore broken, he asked who brok 

 it, and being tould that it was Backlawe, the king's sergiant, he entred the house in a rage, and 

 without much a doe killed the sargiant presently, and tooke his flight himselfe to Roadanus Abbot 

 of Lohra, who was his mother's brother, thinking by his sanctitye and meanes to secure himselfe 

 from the king's furie for kiUing the sargiant. 



" Roadanus sent his said nephew to the King of Wales, who was his well-wisher, and one in 

 whome hee reposed great trust. The King of Ireland heareing of the killing of his sargiant by 

 Hugh Gwarey, caused narrow search to be made for him, and understanding that he was sent to the 



