Page 42 - WDT MAGAZINE IRELAND ISSUE WINTER 2018

The Vikings in Ireland

St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland in the 4th
century, spawning distinctively Celtic monasticism.
Monasteries and monastic settlements replaced the
Roman occupation and became centers of religion
and learning. It was considered the golden age of Ire-
land; for nearly 400 years the island was not invaded,
and it thrived as a center of scholarship and crafts-
manship. Discord at the time was between rival clan
chieftains who were endlessly fighting and competing
for the kingship.
This was all to change at the end of the 8th century
with the coming of the Vikings who, in small mobile
groups, plundered and looted artifacts, gold, and
silver from the monasteries and thriving monastic
settlements up and down the coast. Eventually, they
set aside their raping and pillaging ways, settled in
the Viking Triangle of counties Waterford, Wexford,

42 WDT MAGAZINE WINTER 2018