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Tara--Hill of Kings and Deities

© Lianne Bruynell Lopes

Anyone who has either read the book or seen the movie Gone with the Wind, has heard the name Tara. . .Scarlet O'Hara's plantation home, and basically the life-blood of all her struggles, finagling and will to press on. But where did the name come from and what is its significance?

The real Tara is a hill in County Meath, in the east of Ireland, some 20 miles west of Dublin. Today, at first glance, it might not look all that impressive. . . a green hill with several earthworks, and nothing to show for its regal past. The most notable of these monumental earthworks is the Mound of Hostages. Upon excavation, this was discovered to be a burial mound possibly from around 2000 BC. The hill of Tara also contains, among other earthworks, two joined ring forts, another mound called the Banquet Hall, (likely misnamed during medieval times, thus giving the wrong impression of its true function), and various megalithic monuments.

It was on the hill of Tara that the Ard Ri or High King was crowned. As with all of Irish history, legend is mixed with the background of this hill. The Tuatha De Dannan, that mystical race who once ruled Ireland, are said to have been the first to make Tara their home. The De Dannan tribe were fierce warriors and powerful sorcerers. With them they carried the Lia Fail or Destiny stone. They set this stone in the ground at Tara, and it still stands today. It was said that, much like Excalibur did for Arthur, the Lia Fail could determine who was the true High King. It would roar three times when touched by the foot of the man who was to be king.

Besides roaring, the Destiny Stone is shrouded in more myth. The Lia Fail is a phallic standing stone, said to ensure fertility to newly wed couples. Supposedly, it was taken to Scotland by a group of emigrating Irish, becoming the famous Stone of Scone. The English then took it from the Scots and buried it in Westminster Abbey and called it the Coronation Stone. It was there, upon that stone, the kings of England were crowned. Some time later, a group of Scottish nationalists stole it once again from the English, and a band of Irish stole it from them and returned it to its rightful place at Tara. Of course, it all depends on who you ask, but the Irish claim the stone never left Tara, and the standing stone there today is the same brought across the sea with the Tuatha de Dannan thousands of years ago when they invaded Ireland.