284 
IR El 
with Mofe« the Jewifli legiflator. His mother was Scota, 
the daughter of Pharaoh, by Niul the fon of a Scythian mo¬ 
narch cotemporary with Nimrod. The Gadelians, called 
all'o Sects, from Scota above-mentioned, conquered Ireland 
about 1300 B. C. under Heber and Herenvon, two fens of 
Milefius king of Spain, from whom were defeended all 
the kings of Ireland down to the Englilli conqueft, and 
who are therefore ftyled by the Irilh hiftorians princes of 
the Milefian race. 
From this period the Irilh hiftorians trace a gradual re¬ 
finement of their countrymen from a (late of the grofleft 
barbarity, until a monarch, named Ollam Fodla, eftablilhed 
a regular form of government, erected a grand feminary 
of learning, and inftituted the Fes, or triennial conven¬ 
tion of provincial kings, prielts, and poets, at Feamor or 
Tarah in Meath, for the eftablifhment of laws and regu¬ 
lation of government. But whatever were the inltitu- 
tions of this monarch, it is acknowledged that they proved 
infufiicient to withftand the wildnefs and diforder of the 
times. To Kimbath, one of his luccelTors, the annalifts 
give the honour of reviving them, betides that of regu¬ 
lating Ullter, his family-province, and adorning it with a 
llately palace at Eamannia near Armagh. His immediate 
fucceflor, called Hugony, is Hill more celebrated for ad¬ 
vancing the work of reformation. It feems, that, from 
the earlieft origin of the Irifh nation, the illand had been 
divided into the five provincial kingdoms above-mention¬ 
ed, and four of thele had been fubjedt to the king of the 
fifth, who was nominal monarch of the whole illand. Thele 
four, however, proved fuch obftinate dilturbers of the 
peace, that Hugony, to break their power, parcelled out the 
country into twenty-five dynafties,. binding them by oath 
to accept no other monarch but one of his own family. 
This precaution proved ineffectual. Hugony himfelf died 
a violent death, and all his fuccefi'or.s for a leries of ages 
were affaflinated, fcarcely with one exception. 
About 100 B.C. the pentarchal government was re¬ 
stored, and is laid to have been f'ucceeded by a confi- 
derable revolution in politics. The Irilh bards had for 
many ages difpenfed the laws, and the wdiole nation ftib- 
mitted to their decifions; but, as their laws were exceed¬ 
ingly obfeure, and could be interpreted only by them- 
felves, they took occafion from thence to opprefs the peo¬ 
ple, until at laft they were in danger of being totally ex¬ 
terminated by a general infurreftion. In this emergency 
they fled to Convocar-Mac-Nefla, the reigning monarch, 
who promifed them his protection in cafe they reformed ; 
but at the fame time, in order to quiet the juft complaints 
of his people, he employed the moll eminent among them 
to compile an intelligible, equitable, and diltinCt, body of 
laws, which were received with the greateft joy, and dig¬ 
nified with the name of celejlial deeijions. Thele decifions 
feem to have produced but very little reformation among 
the people in general. We are now prefented with a new 
feries of barbarities, murders, factions, and anarchy; and 
in this difordered fituation of affairs it was, according to 
the Irifh hiftorians, that the chieftain mentioned by Ta¬ 
citus addreifed himfelf to Agricola, and encouraged him 
to make a defeent on Ireland. This l'cheme happened 
not to fait the views of the Roman general at that time, 
and therefore was not adopted ; and fo confident are thefe 
hiftorians of the Itrength of their country even in its then 
diftraCted Hate, that they treat the notion of its being 
fabdued by a Roman legion and fome auxiliaries (the 
force propofed to Agricola), as utterly extravagant; ac¬ 
quainting us at the lame time, that the Irilh were fo far 
from dreading a Roman invafion, that they failed to the 
aftiftance of the PiCts, and, having made a l’uccefsful in- 
curfion into South Britain, returned home with a confi- 
derable booty. 
In the fame (late of barbarity and confufion the king¬ 
dom of Ireland continued till the introduction of Chrif- 
tianity by St. Patrick, about the middle of the fifth cen¬ 
tury. This mifiionauy, according to the adverfaries of 
the Irilh antiquity, firit introduced letters into Ireland, 
, A N D. 
and thus laid the foundations of a future civilization. On 
the other hand, the advocates for that antiquity main¬ 
tain, that the Irilh had the knowledge of letters, and had 
made conliderable progrefs in the arts, before the lime of 
St. Patrick ; though they allow that he introduced the 
Roman character, in which his copies of the Scripture 
and liturgies were written. To enter into the difpute 
would be unnecefiary, efpecially as the hiltory already 
given is generally reckoned, excepting by fame of the Irifh 
themfelves, entirely fabulous, and thought to have been 
invented after the introduction of Chriftianity. An origin 
of the Irifh nation hath been found out much nearer than 
Afia, Greece, or Egypt; namely, the illand of Britain, 
from which it is now thought that Ireland was lirft peo¬ 
pled. A difpute hath arifen concerning the place whence 
the firft emigrants from Britain fet fail for Ireland. The 
honour of being the mother-country of the Irilh has 
been difputed between the North and South Britons. 
Mr. Macpherfon has argued ftrenuoufiy for the former, 
and Mr. Whitaker for the latter. For an account of 
their difpute, however, we mull refer to the works of 
thefe gentlemen. Mr. Whitaker claims the victory, and 
challenges to himfelf the honour of being the firft: who 
clearly and truly demonllrated the origin of the Irilh. 
The name of Ireland, according to Mr. Whitaker, is ob- 
vioufly derived from the word Jar or Eir, which in the 
Celtic language fignifies “ weft.” This word was fome- 
times pronounced Iver, and Hiver ; whence the names of 
Iris, Ierna, Jnverna, Iverna, Hibernia, and Ireland ; by all of 
which it hath at fome time or other been known. About 
350 B. C. according to the fame author, the Belgce crofted 
the channel, invaded Britain, and feized the whole ex¬ 
tended line of the fouthern coaft, from Kent to Devon- 
fhire. Numbers of the former inhabitants, who had gra¬ 
dually retired before the enemy, were obliged at laft to 
take (hipping on the weftern coaft of England, and palled 
over into the uninhabited ille of Ireland. Thefe were af¬ 
terwards joined by another body of Britons driven out by 
the Belgae under Divitiacus, about 100 B. C. For two 
centuries and a half afterwards, thefe colonies were con¬ 
tinually reinforced with frelh fwarms from Britain; as the 
populoufnefs of this illand, and the vicinity of that, in¬ 
vited them to fettle in the one, or the bloody and fuccef- 
five wars in Britain during this period naturally induced 
them to relinquilh the other; and the whole circuit of 
Ireland appears to have been completely peopled about 
150 years after Chrilt; and, as the inhabitants had all fled 
equally from the dominion of the Belgae, or for fome 
other caule left their native country, they were diftin- 
guilhed among the Britons by one general and very ap- 
pofite name, viz. that of Scuites, or Scots, i. e. wanderers, 
or refugees. 
Mr. Whitaker alfo informs us, that in the times of the 
Romans Ireland was inhabited by eighteen tribes; by one 
upon the northern and three on the fouthern Ihore, feven 
upon the weftern, fix on the eaftern, and one in the cen¬ 
tre. The following are their names: Along the eaftern 
coaft, and the Vergivian or internal ocean, were ranged 
the Damnii, the Voluntii, and the Eblani, the Caucii, the 
Menapii, and the Coriondii. Upon the fouthern Ihore 
and along the verge of the Cantabrian ocean, lay the Bri- 
gantes, the Vodiae, and the Ibernii. Upon the weftern 
Ihore of the illand, and along the great Britannic or At¬ 
lantic ocean, were the Lucanii or Lucenii, the Velaborii, 
and the Cangani, the Auterii, the Nagnatse, the Hardinii, 
and Venicnii. Upon the northern fhore, and along the 
margin of the Deucaledonian ocean, were only the Ro- 
bogdii. The central regions of the illand, all Tyrone, 
part of Fermanagh and Leitrim, all Monaghan, part of 
Armagh; all Cavan, all Longford, and all Weft-Meath; 
all the King’s and Queen’s county, all Kilkenny, and all' 
Tipperary ; were planted by the Scoti. 
General Vallancey, who is well known to have devoted 
great part of a long life to the inveltigarion of Irilh hif- 
tory and antiquities, has, in his “ Obferyations on the pri- 
3 mitive 
