The+Celts

=  = __**Celtic Warfare**__ - After the Celts first appearance in the history that we have discovered the Celt’s came into war with the Mediterranean people. After they moved into Po Valley, they got the Etruscans out of their hair for a while by defeating them in many battles. Then they celebrated. During a battle against an Etruscan city, the Romans where called in as negotiators. During the negotiations a Roman emissary killed one of the Celtic leaders. Seeking revenge, the Celt’s sent over warriors to Rome demanding that they hand over the murderer. The Roman Senate refused. After this event the Celtic’s decided to march into Roman territory defeating a Roman army on the way, the Celt’s took over Rome. The Romans did not want to go into battle with the Celt’s but instead they went to Capitol Hill. The Romans complained about the Celt’s balances being out of line. The Romans were afraid to try and push the Celtics out of Rome so over time the Celtic’s left Rome one by one to settle in Scotland and Ireland far away from Rome. - In Celtic times there was a war season, kind of like a fishing season. It started in spring and went through summer. Before the season the Celt’s would prep there weapons to the finest so they can fight their best. The Celtic’s would get intoxicated and act crazy to intimidate the enemies before the battles. To make them look even scarier they would paint their bodies in blue patterns and wash their hair in clay so they could spike it up. To cause a disturbance the Celt’s would stir up dust with their chariots. Most of the battles were between local tribes over arguments over land and stolen cattle. - For weapons the average Celtic warrior would have the typical Spear and sword. Only the wealthy warriors would have their own sword. The spear was made of a led spearhead that was attached to a wooden pole that was about two and a half metres long. It was really hard to get out of a human so the warriors would only throw their spear if they were very desperate. Since the Celtic warriors battled nude with paintings on them, they needed a shield. The average shield was made of wood with a handle in the middle of it. They were usually very well decorated. They had a boss covering the handgrip so their hands do not get cut off and there was also a metal rim around the sides of the shield to give it stability and a sturdy structure. The sword was made from a long iron blade that was sharpened on both sides. The bottom of the sword was decorated. The scabbard was used to protect the tip of the blade and they were also well decorated. - I would like to see a Celtic war because I would like to see the unique weapons they used and see how the technology in weapons has changed so much since the ancient times. Also the odd intimidations and scaring tactics they used on their enemies. = =  [|http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/reticulum/NORTHERNFRONTIER/TheWretchedBritons/CelticWarfare.htm#Swords.html] __**Celtic Weddings**__ - A Celtic wedding was a very special time for both the man and the woman. They would invite family and friends from as far as 30-35 miles away and they would walk all that distance to take part in the wedding. Most of the bride and grooms families already knew each other because they usually grew up in the same neighborhood, unlike bride and grooms families today. All of the weddings were at churches. Lots of the time the wedding couple would spend their wedding night in the barn. The brides girl-friends got her dressed for bed and tucked her into bed before the groom got there. The groom’s buddies would delay and harass the groom before he was allowed to join his wife in the barn. Than both the bride and grooms friends would pull pranks on them and peep in on them until they were too intoxicated. - For the preparation of the wedding the bride and grooms friends and family would set up the festivities for the wedding. They would bring out the alcohol, the food and all of the decorations for the wedding. They would also get the gifts for the bride and groom prepared. For the bride and grooms rings they would get their parents and grandparents rings and cuffs and almost anything gold they had. Then they would take the gold to a metal smith and he would turn it into new rings. - The bride and groom would get a salute of gun shots to open up the wedding. During the wedding ceremony there would be a piece of bread broken over the bride or grooms head and the family and friends would tussle with each other to eat the crumbs off of the floor so they would have food fortune for their weddings. After the ceremony the bride and groom would open the presents and then it would be a night full of feasting, dancing and lots and lots of drinking. - I would like to attend a Celtic wedding to see the very odd and funny wedding traditions they had that would be considered strange and morbid in the 21’st century. = =  [] = = __**Celtic Roundhouses**__ - Celtic roundhouses were circular houses made by stone or wood poles that were joined together by wattle and daub panels. They ranged from 5-15 meters in diameter. Eventually they started to be more eco-friendly and they started to make them out of straw and cob with reciprocal frame Greene roofs. - In the Celtic roundhouses they had heating, lighting and cooking. The lighting was not anything fancy; it came from the doorway in the daytime and from the fire in the night time. The heating came from the stone fireplaces that they had inside the roundhouses and the sun during the day and the daub that held the walls together also worked as insulation very well to keep the heat in the house. The cooking was done by the fire if the food needed to be warmed up or cooked. They would set rocks outside the fireplace till they get red hot and then cook food on the hot rocks. - Most of the roundhouses were made in ditches or right beside the ditches and only the warriors and their families would live in them. They figure that chief lived in the largest homes and people think that the peasants lived in hovels inside the walls of the fort. - I would like to visit a traditional Celtic roundhouse to see how small of an area a family of four would have to live in and realize how much times have changed and how much more intelligent we are now a days. = = [] = = [] __**Celtic Christmas**__ - To prepare for a typical Celtic Christmas you would put a candle on your window to guide Mary and Joseph on their way to Bethlehem. They would hang a holly and an ivy wreath outside their houseto scare off the evil spirits. They would decorate a Christmas tree to celebrate the sun, the moon and the stars and some of the decorations represent those who have died. - On Christmas day they gave each other Christmas gifts because they represent the day of the winter solstice which was the day that people shared gifts to each other and Christmas gifts always help lighten the mood of the Christmas spirit. They would have a large Christmas meal at the end of the day. - After Christmas the Celts would would take down the tree and decorations and save them for the next year so they can have multiple happy Christmases. - I chose Celtic Christmas because I think it would be interesting to see what kind of beliefs they had about Christmas. = = [] = ‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍ **The Celts ‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍** =

The **Celts** were a diverse group of tribal societies in the Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.

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The **Celt** society was made of six basic classes. A person could easily go from the lowest the highest or the other way around. lowest of the classes were the law breakers of society. they were known as the “non-freemen”.The next class up was the itinerant tribesmen. these people hired their selves as field workers and became the rosters of the military. The tribesmen worked on their own land and paid the taxes. these peoples were the third grade of society. Also, the craftsmen and blacksmiths had a part in this group. As the forth class in society the elected officials would carry out the administrative duties of the tribes, collect taxes, maintain roads, mills, bridges, and keep the army organized and supplied. The druids, bards, lawyers and doctors were apart of the professional class. the druids not only served part of the religious of the Celtic society, but they were doctors, judges,and philosophers. Bards would share the oral traditions of the society. this required the learning all of the stories and tales.If they left out any phrases or words they would be immediately be notified his meant they had to be perfect with their words. The highest ranking of the Celtic society is the Chieftain. The Chiefs were not lawmakers but had to answer to the will of the peoples.They were elected by tribe itself. The Chieftains could be male or female, but the selection of a female as the Chief was not very often. The celtic people were the first to have an art style that is recognised is modern society. horse shoes, spoked wheels, and fertiliser were just some of the many things that the Celts brought to our world. =====

-The usual **Celtic** clothing consisted of long sleeved shirts and trousers that were usaually made of linen or wool. Their most iconic piece of jewellery was the Torc, usually made of metal and worn around the neck. Other jewellery worn were Brooches and Armlets.' The celtic housing were called 'Round Houses'. they were made out of wicker wood, stone and wood. In the center of the home was a hearth (fire place) where they would keep warm and heat rocks to cook on.
 * __Clothing__**
 * __Housing__**

The Celts in Europe, past and present: areas where Celtic languages are widely spoken __Dark Green__: the six most commonly recognised 'Celtic nations' __Lime Green__:maximum Celtic expansion, by the 3rd century BC __Tourqoise:__core Hallstatt territory, by the 6th century BC __Yellow: __During the European Iron Age, the ancient Celts extended their territory

The **Celts** were a diverse group of tribal societies in the Iron Age in Europe. The Celts had expanded over a wide range as far west as Ireland, and as far east as Galatia, and as far north as Scotland. The Celts were described as wild beasts. They are also known as head hunters. To the Celts the head was like the soul. The head was the center of emotion as well as life itself. The Celts would take heads and sacrifice it to their ruler. In battle the Celts would cut off peoples necks and attach it to their horses necks.When eating they sat at low tables just like the Chinese. When they ate they sat on wolf or dog skins. The Celts were very superstitious.Chariots were very important in the Celtic life. They used them in battle. Driver and Warrior were a strong team. The driver would bring the chariot to the point of battle, at which the warrior would leap from the chariot and engage the enemy, the driver would then wheel off to one side, ready to come sweeping in to retrieve the warrior when needed. Psychological warfare was used quite often by the Celts. They would paint their faces to look like demonic creatures to scare the enemies to get the first hit against the enemy. They would also scream while attacking enemies which also brought fear into their enemies which usually made them hesitate, which allowed them to get the first hit.The last psychological technique used by the Celts was attacking their enemies naked, which made the enemy either run away or hesitate, so they could get the first hit on their enemies. Fighting was very religious in the Celtic culture, which is why most of them went into battle with almost no fear at all.
 * __Battle:__**

Some foods the Celts ate were, barley, rye, wheat, oats, carrots, garlic, wild fruits- cherries and berries, wild greens, wild animals, fish, mutton and lamb.Some dishes the Celts ate were, Stout chicken wraps, Scottish Mince and Tatties, Corned Beef Cabbage, Irish Steak and Stout Stew, Seafood Chowder, Panini, Haggis, Eggs,The Celts were also very big whisky drinkers.
 * __Food__**

The Celts were a very spiritual culture. They had many Gods and Goddesses in which they honoured nature and the world around them. The Celtic Religious system operated in a similar way to the Romans. The only difference is the Romans thought there gods were immortal and the Celts believed nothing could escape the grasp of reality and death.
 * __Religion__**

The Irish among the Celtic peoples possess the unique interest of having carried into the light of modern historical research many of the features of a native Celtic civilization. There is one thing which they did not carry across the gulf which divides us from the ancient world their religion. It was not nearly that they changed it. They left it behind them and now all record of it is lost. St Patrick, himself was a Celt, who was apostolic in Ireland during the fifth century, has left us an autobiographical narrative of his mission, a document of intense interest, and the earliest extant record of British Christianity; but in it he tells us nothing of the doctrines he came to supplant. We learn far more of Celtic religious beliefs from Julius Caesar, who approached them from quite another side. The Celts did not see their Gods as having human bodies until the late Iron Age. The Iron age was the stage in development when tools and weapons main ingredient was iron.

They were inventive storytellers and poets. They combined their religious beliefs with almost everything they did, which is what gave them their bravery, perseverance and strength to overcome and defeat their enemies. Finally, their ancient wisdom and understanding is thought, by many to be beyond other cultures.



__Top 10 Celtic Gods__ The Celtic god Alator was associated with Mars, the Roman war god. His name is said to mean "he who nourishes the people". The Celtic god Albiorix was associated with Mars as Mars Albiorix. Albiorix is the "king of the world." Belenus is a Celtic god of healing worshiped from Italy to Britain. The worship of Belenus was linked with the healing aspect of Apollo. The etymology of Beltaine may be connected with Belenus. Belenus is also written: Bel, Belenos, Belinos, Belinu, Bellinus, and Belus. Borvo (Bormanus, Bormo) was a Gallic god of healing springs whom the Romans associated with Apollo. He is depicted with helmet and shield. Bres was a Celtic fertility god, the son of the Fomorian prince Elatha and the goddess Eriu. Bres married the goddess Brigid. Bres was a tyrannical ruler, which proved his undoing. In exchange for his life, Bres taught agriculture and made Ireland fertile. British goddess connected with river and water cults, equated with Minerva, by the Romans and possibly linked with the goddess Brigit. Brigit is the Celtic goddess of fire, healing, fertility, poetry, cattle, and patroness of smiths. Brigit is also known as Brighid or Brigantia and in Christianity is known as St. Brigit or Brigid. She is compared with the Roman goddesses Minerva and Vesta. Ceridwen is a Celtic shape-shifting goddess of poetic inspiration. She keeps a cauldron of wisdom. She is the mother of Taliesin. Cernunnos is a horned god associated with fertility, nature, fruit, grain, the underworld, and wealth, and especially associated with horned animals like the bull, stag, and a ram-headed serpent. Cernunnos is born at the winter solstice and dies at the summer solstice. Julius Caesar associated Cernunnos with the Roman Underworld god Dis Pater. Source: "Cernunnos" //A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology//. James McKillop. Oxford University Press, 1998. Epona is a Celtic horse goddess associated with fertility, a cornucopia, horses, asses, mules, and oxen who accompanied the soul on its final journey. Uniquely for the Celtic goddesses, the Romans adopted her and erected a temple to her in Rome.
 * 1. Alator **
 * 2. Albiorix **
 * 3. Belenus **
 * 4. Borvo **
 * 5. Bres **
 * 6. Brigantia **
 * 7. Brigit **
 * 8. ** ** [|Ceridwen] **
 * 9. Cernunnos **
 * 10. Epona **