The gods arrive — and Ireland must be won
When the Tuatha Dé Danann arrived in Ireland, they didn’t find it empty. The Fir Bolg were already there — the people who had returned to Ireland from slavery in Greece, who had divided the island into its five provinces, and who had been living on it peacefully for thirty-seven years. Two great peoples now stood on the same island, and there wasn’t room for both of them.
The Tuatha Dé Danann sent messengers to the Fir Bolg king, Eochaid mac Eirc, with a simple offer: give us half of Ireland, or fight us for all of it. Eochaid mac Eirc took a month to think it over — and then chose to fight.
Preparing for War
Both sides used the month of preparation well. The Tuatha Dé Danann were a race of gods and magic-workers — their warriors, their druids, their healers, and their craftsmen all prepared for a battle unlike any Ireland had seen before. The Fir Bolg were fierce fighters in their own right, with warriors who had spent years building muscle carrying heavy leather bags of soil. Neither side was going to give way easily.
The battle was held on the plain of Mag Tuired — Moytura — in the west of Ireland, in what is now County Mayo. Both armies faced each other across the plain in a conflict that would last for four days.
The Duel of Champions
Before the full battle began, there was a single combat between two champions — Sreng of the Fir Bolg and Nuada of the Tuatha Dé Danann. The two warriors met and showed each other their weapons — and both were impressed by what they saw. They agreed to fight with matching arms. The contest was fierce, and when it ended, Nuada had lost his right arm — cut off at the shoulder by Sreng’s great broad spear. Nuada was the king of the Tuatha Dé Danann. A king with a blemish could not rule. The victory that followed would cost them their king.
Four Days of Battle
The fighting went on for four days. The Tuatha Dé Danann had the advantage of magic and divine skill. The Fir Bolg had the advantage of fierce courage and powerful warriors. At the end of four days, the Fir Bolg king Eochaid mac Eirc was killed — chased to the sea by the Tuatha Dé Danann after the main battle turned against him, and slain on a beach. The Fir Bolg had lost.
The Aftermath
The Tuatha Dé Danann won Ireland — but their king Nuada could no longer rule. A king with a missing limb was considered blemished, and blemished kings brought bad luck to the land. The divine physician Dian Cecht crafted Nuada a replacement arm of pure silver — every joint and finger working as perfectly as the real thing — and Nuada became known ever after as Nuada Airgetlám: Nuada of the Silver Arm. Later, Dian Cecht’s son Miach did something even more extraordinary — he grew Nuada a new arm of living flesh. But that miracle had its own dark consequences.
As for the Fir Bolg — they were not destroyed. The survivors were given the province of Connacht and allowed to stay. Sreng, the champion who had taken Nuada’s arm in single combat, was given the whole of Connacht for himself. There was honour even in defeat.
Key facts about First Battle of Mag Tuired
- Irish title: Cath Maige Tuired Cunga (“The Battle of Mag Tuired of the Narrow Neck”)
- Combatants: Tuatha Dé Danann vs Fir Bolg
- Location: Mag Tuired (Moytura), County Mayo
- Duration: Four days
- Key duel: Nuada vs Sreng — Nuada lost his arm in single combat
- Fir Bolg king killed: Eochaid mac Eirc
- Result: Tuatha Dé Danann victory; Fir Bolg given Connacht; Nuada unable to rule due to his wound
- Nuada’s solution: A silver arm crafted by Dian Cecht; later a living arm grown by Miach
- Cycle: Mythological Cycle
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