Mr. Peteie on the History and Antiquities of Tara Hill. 119 



Gf^oc 6pc, - 



Bishop Ere, 



Whatever he adjusted was right. 

 Whoever judges justly and fairly 

 Will receive the blessing of Bishop Ere* 

 Or, Earc, the daughter of Loam, was his 

 mother, and from her he was called Mac Erca. 



Muirchertach sent messengers to demand the 

 Boru, and he did not obtain it, but a promise of a 

 battle instead. And Muirchertach assembled the 

 men of Leath- Cuinn and the nobles of the race 

 of Conall Earrbreagh, the son of Niall. The 

 Lagenians came to Bregia against them, under 

 the conduct of Jllann, the son of Dunking, King 

 of Leinster, to give battle to the Hy-Niall. And 

 the battle of Deata, in Bregia, was fought between 

 them, in which were slain Ardgal, the son of 

 Conall Earrbreagh, and Colcu, son of Cloithi, son 

 of Crunn, son of Fedhlimidh Casan, son of CoUa 

 Dacrich, King of Airgiall ; and the Lagenians 

 were defeated in this battle, and in many others, 

 so that he raised the Soru without a battle, while 

 he lived afterwards. Among those battles fought 

 by Muirchertach, were the battle of Eibhlinne 

 and the battle of Magh Ailbhe, and the battle of 

 Altnhain, and the devastation of the Cliachs 

 against the Lagenians ; of which was said : 



The battle of Cinn-eich, the battle of Almhain, — 

 It was an illustrious, famous period ; — 

 The devastation of the Cliachs, the battle of 

 Aidhne, 

 Ocup carh TTIaiji CTilbi. And the battle of Magh Ailbhe. 



Muirchertach, according to Tighearnach, perished in the house of Cletty, 

 over the Boyne, in 534, after a reign of twenty-four years. His death, and the 

 manner of it are recorded in the Annals of Ulster thus : — " A. D. Dxxxiii. 

 Demersio Muircertaig, Jilii Erce, in dolio pleno vino, in arce Cletig supra Boin." 



It appears from all the authorities that Muirchertach was a Christian ; and he 

 should therefore be regarded as the first Irish monarch who was so. In the 



Cec ni con cepoaD pa cepc. 

 Cach aen bepep co cepr caip 

 popfbaiD bennachc €ppoic Spc. 

 No, ip 1 Gape, injen CooTpn, a marhaip, 

 ocup ip aipi a oepchea ITIac Gapca oe. 



t)o chuip chpa ITluipchepcach cechca 

 o'lappaiD na 6opoina, ocup ni uaip ach 

 carh DO jellcro do; ocup do chinoil ITIuip- 

 cheapcach pip leichi Cuino ocup uaipli 

 cloinoi Conaill Gappbpeaj, mic Heill. 

 Ceacaic cpa Caijinj co 6pea5aib na 

 n-ajaio do chup chac pe huib Neill, im 

 Illano mac Dunlainj, im pij ^aijen ; ocup 

 cuipchep cachtDeaca i m6pea5aib ecuppu, 

 ocup mapbcap ann Qpogal TTIac Conaill 

 Gappbpeaj, ocup Colcu niac Cloichi, mic 

 Cpuino, mic peolimche Capan, mic Colla 

 t)a-cpich, pi CTipjiall ; ocup bpipcep pop 

 6aijnib m each pin, ocup caca imoa aili, 

 cop choboij can chach in bopoma in cen po 

 ba beo lapum. Ip do na cachaib pm do 

 chuip muipchepcach .1. each Giblinoi, ocup 

 cacli TTlaiji Qilbe, ocup cach Qlmaine 

 ocup opeain na Cliach pop CaijniB, oia 

 noebpao : 



Cac ChinDeicb, cac Qlmaine, — 

 pa h-aimpip aippopic ampe ; — 

 Opcain na Cliach, each Qione, 



This quatrain is also quoted by Tighearnach, who ascribes it to St. Patrick. 



