Druids

Did you know that the ancient druids, such as those synonymous with Ynys Môn, were not just religious leaders but also authorities in legal, education and medicinal matters?

While they remain something of a mystery, given a lack of contemporary writings about the druids and their practices, we have some understanding of them which comes from Roman writers who did live at that time, such as Julius Caesar, Tacitus and Cicero.

There are also later Irish writings, such as Táin Bó Cúailnge which - though believed to have been written around the 12th century AD, far after the time of the druids - could perhaps be a far more contemporary account than it appears, given it had been spoken orally for centuries before it was penned. This cannot be said for certain, however.

Caesar's account mentions that the druids were one of the two most important castes in the ancient Celtic (a word he wouldn't have used) world, alongside the nobles. They were a powerful group involved in the administration and order of the people they belonged to, influencing (if not controlling) education, law, medicine and so forth. They didn't serve militarily and were exempt from taxation, such was their standing and reverence. Furthermore, druids are predominantly depicted as grey-bearded old men but there are accounts (both classical, Tacitus, and mythological, Táin Bó Cúailnge) of female druids.