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The Celtic languages can be broken up into two different categories: Insular Celtic, and Continental Celtic. The Celts were Polytheistic and their priestly class was called the druids. The Druidic Priesthood was broken down intothree Ranks which were in order the following: Ovate, Bard, Druid. The Ovates were the lowest ranking and they were diviners and healers. Next in rank were the bards. they learned all the Celtic legends and learned how to play the lyre.After learning the legends and music, the bards would go around the countryside and gather information to bring back tothe druids as they told the legends to music.
If a King did not sho the proper hospitality then a druid would come up with a song that would make fun of the king. This would cause the king to lose face among his people.
This type of
song was called a satire. The Druids were the highest rank in the
priesthood. They were lawyers, judges, scholars and main advisor to a
king on all matters. The druids were the power behind the thrown
because no king made a move without consulting his druid advisor. The
Romans and Christianity put an end to the ancient druids.
In the 1700s, the British
isles most notably England and Whales experienced a resurgence in
druidism. This revival was started by John Aubrey, John Toland, William
Stuckley, and thepoet William Blake. John Aubrey was the first to
connect Stonehenge to the druids. Today this information is being
debated by most druidic scholars. Some think
that Aubrey was a Chief
Druid that had been trained without interruption in druidism. John
Toland read Aubrey's theories and wrote a book without giving Aubrey
any credit. John Toland started The Ancient Druid Order in 1717. The
poet William Blake is rumored to have been a Chief Druid in The Ancient
Druid Order. The Ancient Druid Order lasted from 1717 until it split
into two different druid orders in 1964.
Copyright: Associated Content
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