So it happened that Medb [P], Queen of Connaught – said to be so beautiful that it robbed men of two-thirds of their valour to simply look upon her – and her husband, King Ailill mac Máta [P], fell to arguing over wealth. Both rulers in their own right, they were equal in all power and property, but for one thing: Finnbhennach.
Finnbhennach, the white horned, was a bull so potent and powerful, he made Ailill by far the richer of the two. This, however, was a point of contention, for Finnbhennach had originally been a part of Medb’s own herds but took it upon himself to move into Ailill’s.
It had been, in times before, that Finnbhennach was a man of the Tuatha Dé Danann [P], the ancient tribe of gods of Ireland. He’d been a royal pig-herder, named Rucht, and fell into dispute with another of his kind; a man named Friuch, who served another Danann king. Being as they were, they fought, and fought in many forms, through many ages, until finally both were born again into the form of mighty bulls. Where Rucht had been reborn as Finnbhennach, and being such as he was, deigned himself above being “owned” by any woman – thereby removing himself to Ailill’s herd – so Fruich was born again as Donn Cuailnge [P]; the Brown of Cooley.
Donn Cuailnge, the equal of Finnbhennach, was the only bull in all Ériu to match the prestige of the white-horned one, and was owned by an Ulsterman named Dáire mac Fiachna [P].Medb fixated upon the Great Brown, seeing possession of him as the only way she could match her husband in wealth. She approached Dáire in order to acquire the magnificent beast. She offered him all in her power; vast treasures, lands and “her favours” if he would part with the beast, even to simply loan him for a single year… and he would have happily done so… but for one small thing.
“The Queen,” one of her envoys laughed, while drinking with Dáire, should he not be forth-coming in handing over Donn Cuailnge, “would simply take the great bull from him, by force.” And it was done. No King, no Queen, no Hero or herder would threaten Dáire mac Fiachna. Queen Medb could come and try take the bull if she dared. She did…
In Part Three, we’ll see the battle commence.
Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four