Conall Cra Bhuidhe
Encyclopedia
Conall Cra Bhuidhe or Conall Yellowclaw is a Scottish fairy tale
collected by John Francis Campbell
in Popular Tales of the West Highlands
, listing his informant as James Wilson, blind fiddler in Islay. Joseph Jacobs
included it in Celtic Fairy Tales, softening one episode and noting it occurred as The Black Thief and Knight of the Glen
in Ireland. A version of the tale also appears in A Book of Giants
by Ruth Manning-Sanders
.
Conall went with his sons to Lochlann, and there he told them to seek out the king's miller. They stayed with him, and Conall bribed the miller to put him and his sons in the sacks of bran he delivered to the king. In the stables, Conall had his sons make hiding holes before they tried to steal the horse. When they tried, it kept making such noise that the servants would come. They would hide, but in time, the king realized that there were men in the stables, and found Conall and his sons.
Conall told his story, and because he had had to steal it, the king said he would not hang him, but he would hang his sons. He told Conall that if he were ever in a worse situation than his sons, and told him the story, he would give Conall his youngest son.
Conall told of a time when he went to get a cow and its calf with his servant, and they met with cats. The head bard among them told cat after cat to sing a cronan to Conall, and demanded that he pay a reward for it. First he had to give the calf, then the cow, then (in Campbell's version) the servant, and finally the cats went after him. He got up a tree and killed a cat that came after him, but the cats dug at the tree's roots. Fortunately a priest was traveling with delving men and heard the noise, and they came to his rescue.
The king told him he had won his youngest son, and if he could tell him of a still harder case, he would give him his next youngest son. Conall told of a time that he followed some smoke and fell into a giant
's cave. It threatened to kill him, but it was blind in one eye, and Conall said he could cure that eye, and blinded it in the other instead. In the morning, the giant ordered him to free the goats. Conall killed one and in its hide escaped with the rest. The giant realized this and offered him a ring for his stalwartness. Conall told it to throw it to the ground and he would take it; he did, and it called to the giant when he called to it, and Conall could not take it off. He cut off his finger and threw it into the sea, and when it called back to the giant, the giant followed it and drowned. Conall took all its gold and silver and offered as proof that he was in fact missing a finger.
The king told him he had won his next youngest son, and if he could tell him of a still harder case, he would give him his (next) oldest son. Conall told him that he was married, but went to sea and found a woman trying to slit the throat of a baby by a cauldron. He asked her, and she told him that the giant there would kill her if she did not. He managed to trick the giant but the giant caught him, and Conall barely managed to kill him in time.
The king's mother was listening to this, and told him that she had been the woman and he had been the baby, so Conall had saved his life. The king gave him the horse, gold and silver, and all the lives of his sons.
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
collected by John Francis Campbell
John Francis Campbell
John Francis Campbell , Celtic scholar, educated at Eton and Edinburgh, was afterwards Secretary to the Lighthouse Commission...
in Popular Tales of the West Highlands
Popular Tales of the West Highlands
Popular Tales of the West Highlands is a four-volume collection of fairy tales, collected and published by John Francis Campbell, and often translated from Gaelic as well. Alexander Carmichael was one of the main contributors...
, listing his informant as James Wilson, blind fiddler in Islay. Joseph Jacobs
Joseph Jacobs
Joseph Jacobs was a folklorist, literary critic and historian. His works included contributions to the Jewish Encyclopaedia, translations of European works, and critical editions of early English literature...
included it in Celtic Fairy Tales, softening one episode and noting it occurred as The Black Thief and Knight of the Glen
The Black Thief and Knight of the Glen
The Black Thief and Knight of the Glen is an Irish fairy tale collected in Hibernian Tales. Andrew Lang included it in The Red Fairy Book.-Synopsis:...
in Ireland. A version of the tale also appears in A Book of Giants
A Book of Giants
A Book of Giants is a 1963 anthology of 13 fairy tales from Europe that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. It is one in a long series of such anthologies by Manning-Sanders...
by Ruth Manning-Sanders
Ruth Manning-Sanders
Ruth Manning-Sanders was a prolific British poet and author who was perhaps best known for her series of children's books in which she collected and retold fairy tales from all over the world. All told, she published more than 90 books during her lifetime. The dust jacket for A Book of Giants...
.
Synopsis
Conall Cra Bhuidhe was a royal tenant and had four (or three) sons. One day, his sons and the king's fought, and the king's big son was killed. The king told Conall that he could save his sons if he stole the brown horse of the king of Lochlann. Conall told him that he would steal the horse to please the king, even if his sons were in no danger. His wife lamented that he had not rather let the king kill his sons than endanger himself.Conall went with his sons to Lochlann, and there he told them to seek out the king's miller. They stayed with him, and Conall bribed the miller to put him and his sons in the sacks of bran he delivered to the king. In the stables, Conall had his sons make hiding holes before they tried to steal the horse. When they tried, it kept making such noise that the servants would come. They would hide, but in time, the king realized that there were men in the stables, and found Conall and his sons.
Conall told his story, and because he had had to steal it, the king said he would not hang him, but he would hang his sons. He told Conall that if he were ever in a worse situation than his sons, and told him the story, he would give Conall his youngest son.
Conall told of a time when he went to get a cow and its calf with his servant, and they met with cats. The head bard among them told cat after cat to sing a cronan to Conall, and demanded that he pay a reward for it. First he had to give the calf, then the cow, then (in Campbell's version) the servant, and finally the cats went after him. He got up a tree and killed a cat that came after him, but the cats dug at the tree's roots. Fortunately a priest was traveling with delving men and heard the noise, and they came to his rescue.
The king told him he had won his youngest son, and if he could tell him of a still harder case, he would give him his next youngest son. Conall told of a time that he followed some smoke and fell into a giant
Giant (mythology)
The mythology and legends of many different cultures include monsters of human appearance but prodigious size and strength. "Giant" is the English word commonly used for such beings, derived from one of the most famed examples: the gigantes of Greek mythology.In various Indo-European mythologies,...
's cave. It threatened to kill him, but it was blind in one eye, and Conall said he could cure that eye, and blinded it in the other instead. In the morning, the giant ordered him to free the goats. Conall killed one and in its hide escaped with the rest. The giant realized this and offered him a ring for his stalwartness. Conall told it to throw it to the ground and he would take it; he did, and it called to the giant when he called to it, and Conall could not take it off. He cut off his finger and threw it into the sea, and when it called back to the giant, the giant followed it and drowned. Conall took all its gold and silver and offered as proof that he was in fact missing a finger.
The king told him he had won his next youngest son, and if he could tell him of a still harder case, he would give him his (next) oldest son. Conall told him that he was married, but went to sea and found a woman trying to slit the throat of a baby by a cauldron. He asked her, and she told him that the giant there would kill her if she did not. He managed to trick the giant but the giant caught him, and Conall barely managed to kill him in time.
The king's mother was listening to this, and told him that she had been the woman and he had been the baby, so Conall had saved his life. The king gave him the horse, gold and silver, and all the lives of his sons.
External links
- Conall Cra Bhuidhe, Campbell's version
- Conall Yellowclaw, Jacobs's version