03/16/2025
On this day , day 6 , in Celtic history month we also salute the fact that it’s women’s history month as well.
Celtic men always extolled the virtues of strong women and the meek never turned us on. Subservient types or models, like you see running rampant in Western culture today, never gained any precedent and were practically unknown.
Celtic women never had to fight for equal rights because they were guaranteed them at birth.
The Celts would've said "a woman's place is HER home". The homesteads of continental Celts and most of the insular Celts were property of the woman not the man. They both were responsible for building it and much like the Amish custom it was oftentimes a village affair.The man never owned the house but it was his responsibility for upkeep.
Descent was held matrilineally not patrilineally because basically everyone knows who the mother is. Lol
One of Caesars biggest complaints when he met the Germans and Celts was that they didn't know who the real fathers were and they didn't care.The patrilineal descent we follow today is a carryover practice from the Romans
They could run a Forge, Farm, and the family
It was said by a Roman writer that the only thing more dangerous than a Celtic warrior was when his wife was defending their homestead with her sword in hand by his side
Women taught sword work and this is evident in the Celtic mythology where these Celtic heros and Kings need the blessing and sometimes training of a high ranking or infamous female Celtic warrior. Most Westerners are familiar with King Arthur and the lady of the lake. The lady of course is downplayed but that comes later on when the tales are written down and prettied up for ears that may be offended.
There is a long history of Celtic kings learning the art of the sword from a sword mistress , a teacher both strong and holy . Arthur is just the end of a tale that stretches far back into prehistory .
The lady of the lake might also be a reference to a goddess, and amongst the Celts ,goddesses aren’t the “second fiddle players” , as you see in other ancient pantheons that are more well-known.
Celtic goddesses were worshiped side-by-side with their male counterparts . The worshipers of some Celtic war goddesses were feared by the Romans and Greeks.
Boudicca, The legendary Icenni queen, who was whipped by the Romans while being forced to watch her daughters r***d showed the roman forces what female Celtic strength was all about. She led a rebellion that burned many towns including London. Years after the revolt Roman mothers would tell their children stories of the big bad British boogie man on her chariot. Her destruction was so widespread that archaeologists oftentimes find a black carbonized layer in London today they call "the Boudicca layer".
The picture on the right is a statue of her in London or what the Roman’s would have called Londinium.
On the other hand, the Brigantes or one of the few known Celtic tribes that existed in Gaul, Britain, AND Ireland had a different path . Brigantian queen, Cartimandua was recognized by the Romans, and they even supported her rule after her divorced husband tried to invade the kingdom. She took his armor bearer as a husband, and raised him up to kingship.
In Celtic culture, the queen was queen by right of birth. The king was king by right of marriage.
Had the Romans not overrun Europe we might have a whole different set of traditions and this world might look a lot different today.
Roman authors knew the strength of the Celtic women in both Gaul and especially the insular or island Celts . Many historians , including me , often connect the rise of Female Gladiatorial battles with the Romans coming into direct conflict with Celtic women . Even they couldn’t downplay their strength snd were quick to exploit the fear of these “ ravenous barbarians “ of whom Roman boogey (wo)men stories were no doubt told .
Their fingerprint can still be found on the Irish, Welsh ,Scottish, and Breton myth today.
Although the picture on the left is from a mythological kingdom in a mythological TV show, it's pretty well aparent she is a Celt and the writers portrayed her accordingly. Her characters strength would have seemed very familiar to Celtic women 2000 years ago.... And to Celtic men.
I raise my Glass and salute Celtic women in the nine Celtic areas that still exist, the blood lines that still flow throughout Europe, and through the rest of the world,including here in America . Your fire will never be extinguished and your gift to the world is strong women everywhere.
