Analysis: Satire had an important social function in medieval Ireland and poet Conchobhar Ruadh Mac Con Midhe knew how to use it
By Gordon Ó Riain, DIAS
The poet in medieval and early modern Ireland was an important figure. He held a high status (on a par with the lowest grade of king). His job included celebrating his patrons in verse and acting as a diplomatic emissary when required. One such poet was the fifteenth-century Conchobhar Ruadh Mac Con Midhe. He was ollamh or chief poet to Eoghan Ó Néill, the ruler of Tyrone. This was a position Conchobhar had taken up as a relatively young man. He could hardly have anticipated that in 1435 his life was to change dramatically and that before long he would have to leave behind his home.
Gaelic Ireland in the late medieval period was ruled by a number of regional kings who could often encounter opposition to their leadership. There was a long-running dispute between Eoghan Ó Néill and a kinsman of his, Brian Óg, who wished to rule in his stead. In 1435, hostilities between the two looked set to come to an end when Brian Óg and his sons visited Eoghan's residence to engage in peace talks. They were escorted there by the poet Conchobhar Ruadh Mac Con Midhe and so were under his protection as a way of ensuring no harm would come to them during their visit (the equivalent of being granted safe passage.)
Rather than make peace, however, Eoghan seized the opportunity to eliminate his rivals, and Brian Óg and his sons were mutilated by each having a hand and foot brutally chopped off (this to make sure they would never become kings). One of his sons died as a result, and, although he was to live for fourteen more years, Brian Óg's limbs were interred in Derry. (The intention may have been to bury the man alongside his limbs at a later stage in line with the idea that a person’s body would be resurrected on Judgement Day.)
Conchobhar Ruadh composed an unusual elegy in which he lamented the loss of Brian Óg's limbs saying that, but for their loss, Brian Óg would certainly have made a great leader - words sure to irk Brian Óg’s enemies and the poet’s former friends.
The severing of Brian Óg's limbs and those of his sons was not only a vicious attack on their persons, it was also an affront to the poet. He had been dishonoured by having his protection ignored in violation of the laws of the time. Indeed, the poet responded immediately with the most powerful weapon in his arsenal: he satirised the perpetrators of the crime.
We may surmise that Conchobhar Ruadh was in the right (if not necessarily politic) in his response to the events of 1435, but instead of bringing the perpetrators to account the poet was sent into exile for his harsh words. (The idea of the rich or powerful being in the wrong, but getting away with wrongdoings, is not only a modern phenomenon.)
Satire amounted to far more than mere mockery in medieval and early modern Ireland. It could rob a person of their reputation and status. A king who tolerated a satire could lose his status, while it was believed that satire could result in physical harm (raising blemishes on the face of the person satirised or even bringing about the person’s death). More prosaically, it was also a way of bringing pressure to bear on the powerful to behave properly or to make good their wrongdoings and so had an important social function. (Although very different, we might compare the idea of the fourth estate holding people in power to account today through journalism.) Satire could not be used indiscriminately, however. Legitimate legal grounds were required and there were laws in place to regulate for the correct use of satire.
In 1453, eighteen years after the event that resulted in the satire, Conchobhar Ruadh wanted to return to his home and so he sought to reconcile with his former patrons in Tyrone. Hoping perhaps that some of the heat had gone out of the dispute with the passage of time and changed circumstances, he addressed a poem to Éinrí Ó Néill who was now de facto ruler of Tyrone (sharing power with his aged father Eoghan). He was, however, one of the main perpetrators of the maimings of 1435. In a poem of reconciliation that was presumably delivered to Éinrí by messenger, Conchobhar Ruadh begins by asking 'How should I approach the king of Oileach [= Éinrí]’ (Cionnas do roichfinn rí Oiligh)?
The poet proceeds in stages to assuage his former patron's anger as he seeks to persuade him to let him return to his former duties and lands.
The poem is replete with references to earlier kings who acted wisely, and Éinrí is advised to follow their example. The poet accepts some responsibility for what has passed between them, but he does not let Éinrí off the hook. The past notwithstanding, he says, Éinrí will reap all of the benefits of the poet's services if he allows him to return.
But this appeal is tinged with a thinly veiled threat. If Éinrí does not listen to the poet now, things will go badly for him. The poet will satirise him again, but not only that, he will visit the sins of the father on the son by satirising Éinrí’s son as well. Conchobhar’s approach in this poem was in line with proper procedure (threatening satire and giving the person a chance to make good, before issuing the satire itself). So, despite Conchobhar’s earlier satire not having its desired effect, the power of satire was still important, but our sources do not record if he was ever allowed to return home.
Dr Gordon Ó Riain is a Professor at the School of Celtic Studies, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. He is a former Research Ireland awardee.
Follow RTÉ Brainstorm on WhatsApp and Instagram for more stories and updates
The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
