Gallowglass Warriors: The Norse-Gael Mercenaries of Ireland and Scotland
Channel: Celtic History Decoded
Date: 2022-10-02

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Gallowglass Warriors: The Norse-Gael Mercenaries of Ireland and Scotland

MacSweeneys and MacCabes are popular and common surnames in certain parts of the world today. Yet, perhaps unknown to many, a major element of the history of these clans was as part of a class of elite mercenaries who went on to become a key fixture in Irish warfare for centuries, feared for their fighting prowess. They were known as Gallowglass, meaning foreign young warriors. 

They are thought to have been the descendants of Norse settlers of Western Scotland in the 10th century, who then intermarried with the local Gaelic population. These Norse-Gael mercenaries went on to play an important role in Irish warfare from around the 13th to the 16th century, with these heavily armoured, well-trained fighters among the ranks of virtually every army across Ireland at various times.

These men were selected for their stature and ferocity, as a description from 1600 states:  "Pycked and selected men of great and mightie bodies, crewell without compassion. The greatest force of the battell consisteth in them, chosinge rather to dye then to yeelde, so that when yt cometh to handy blowes they are quickly slayne or win the feilde."

They were armed with massive 6-foot tall battle axes (potentially influence by their Norse heritage) and a broadsword or claymore, in addition to spears and other throwing weapons. Most were accompanied by a man as their harness bearer and a boy to carry provisions. Some sources argue that Gallowglass were also often accompanied by a few Kerns as well, who were lightly armoured Irish infantry. 

Chieftains in Ireland would often employ Gallowglass warriors as their personal bodyguards, as they were often considered less likely to be influenced by local feuds and politics, and thus, to stab their chieftain in the back. In general, the Gallowglass were often employed for seasonal campaigns. Prior to the advent of gunpowder, the Gallowglass were a major part of warfare in Ireland.   

The roots of the Gallowglass were in Argyll and the Western Isles of Scotland, and potentially in certain Norse settlements in Ulster. Given the Gaelic links between the West of Scotland and Ireland, the Gallowglass were known to integrate easily into Ireland, especially given that they shared the same language.  

Sources:

Gallowglass description - Tracts relating to Ireland by Irish Archaeological Society; Cormacan, mac Maoilbrighde, called Cormacan Ecces https://archive.org/details/tractsrelatingto02irisuoft/page/n21/mode/2up 

Wikipedia, Gallowglass https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallowglass 

Ancient Origins Gallowglass Mercenaries – The Notorious Norse-Gael Soldiers of Fortune - https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-ancient-traditions/gallowglass-0013378 


Creative Commons Imagery:

Andreas F. Borchert https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roscommon_St._Mary%27s_Priory_Choir_Tomb_2014_08_28.jpg  Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International, 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ 

© Sémhur / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-3.0 (or Free Art License) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kingdom_of_Mann_and_the_Isles-en.svg https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en 

#Gallowglass #ireland #history