First Milesian to See Ireland
Íth mac Breogáin was the first of his people to see Ireland and the first of his people to die there. Those two facts are the whole of his story, and they contain everything.
His father Breogán had built a great tower on the Galician coast in Spain. On a clear winter’s evening, Íth climbed to the top and looked north across the Atlantic. He saw a faint gleam on the horizon. He knew what it was. He sailed toward it.
He arrived in Ireland while the Tuatha Dé Danann were mid-dispute — three kings, Mac Cuill, Mac Cécht, and Mac Gréine, were dividing Ireland between them after their predecessors’ deaths. They asked Íth to arbitrate. He gave his judgment and, in the course of it, praised Ireland. He described the island’s qualities — its climate, its abundance, everything that made it worth having. He meant it as a compliment.
The Tuatha Dé Danann heard it as a declaration of intent. They killed him before he could leave.
His companions brought his body back to Spain. Míl Espáine‘s sons saw it. The invasion fleet was assembled. The Milesians came to Ireland to avenge Íth, and the Tuatha Dé Danann’s age of ruling Ireland ended.
He saw the island. He praised it honestly. He died for the praising. And his death gave his people the reason they needed to take it.
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