Tobar an Dualchais - Kist O Riches

Title - Tha cumhachd os-nàdarra aig Mac Rìgh Lochlainn agus tha e a'...
Contributors - Duncan MacDonald
Reporters - Dr Alasdair MacLean

Summary - Mac Rìgh Lochlainn has supernatural powers, and defeats great giants and delivers his uncle from the supernatural powers.

The King of Lochlann married the daughter of the King of Sorcha. They had a son, Mac Rìgh Lochlainn, but the queen died during his christening. The king gave the child to Iarla na Fiudhaidh to raise for a year. He got twelve nurses for the child, but he ripped the breast from the first three and the others left. Iarla na Fiudhaidh offered one third of his wealth to anyone who could nurse the child. Gruagach a' Bhruit Uaine managed it, but took none of his wealth.

When the year was up, she disappeared and the child was returned to his father. The king eventually remarried. During the wedding, three women, Gruagach a' Bhruit Fhinn, Gruagach a' Bhruit Ghuirm and Gruagach a' Bhruit Uaine, came to do battle with the king. His son fought instead. One of them wounded him and he was put under a spell to find out the name of his foster mother. He set off to find this and came to the palace of Fear Mòr Ruadh. He asked him to tell three stories and slept through each one - the first proper sleep he had had for seven years. He had been fighting Rìgh na h-Iorabhaigh and was losing badly, but continued because it was prophesied that his sister's son would come and win the battles for them. His sister was the daughter of the King of Sorcha - Mac Rìgh Lochlainn's mother. Mac Rìgh Lochlainn fought and killed the giants, Rìgh na h-Iorabhaigh and all his people.

He told Fear Mòr Ruadh about the three women and the spell. He knew the women and they visited them. He discovered Gruagach a' Bhruit Uaine was his foster mother. That night, a beautiful woman led him to a cave and turned into a hag. He killed her and other giants there, and brought back to life all the people the hag had killed, including three sons of the King of Ireland, who swore allegiance to him.

The three women's land was plagued by a sea monster which ate people. Mac Rìgh Lochlainn and Fear Mòr Ruadh went out to plough. The monster ate them, but they fought their way out before the beast reached the sea and left it dead.

Mac Rìgh Lochlainn set off home. On the way, he met the King of Ireland. His three sons spent their time keeping bad company - drinking etc. Mac Rìgh Lochlainn went to Ireland with the king. He asked him what death he wished for his sons' friends. The king said he wished for them to be put to sea in dilapidated boat and drowned. This was done, and Mac Rìgh Lochlainn threatened to do the same to the three sons unless they complied with their father's wishes. They promised to do so and he left them all at peace with one another and went home.

Track Duration (h:m:s) - 00:27:09
Date Recorded - 1953.12.29
Language - Gaelic
Genre - Story
Collection - School of Scottish Studies

Track ID - 22913
Original Tape ID - SA1953.270
Original Track ID - SA1953.270.2-271.A1
Audio Quality - Fair
Audio Format - R2R


Item Notes -

Permanent Link - http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/fullrecord/22913/1

Segments:
Play part 1 (00:27:09)
Play part 2 (00:29:28)
Play part 3 (00:05:21)


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