Tracht Esi
Also spelled: Tráig Esi, the Strand of the Mark
The strand where the men of Ulster gather and Cúchulainn kills his own son, named the Strand of the Mark for the footprints the boy leaves in the stones.
Traits
| Type | Strand |
|---|---|
| Name means | The Strand of the Mark, from the footprints left in the stones |
| Also called | Tráig Esi, or Tracht Esi, by the people of Ulster |
| Gathered here | The men of Ulster, seven years to the day after Cúchulainn left Aife |
| Not placed | Kinsella gives no modern name for it |
Overview
Tracht Esi is a strand, and the Táin never says where. Kinsella gives no modern name for it. The text says the people of Ulster call it Tráig, or Tracht, Esi, the Strand of the Mark. It is where Cúchulainn kills his only son.
The men of Ulster are gathered there seven years to the day after Cúchulainn left Aife. A boy comes toward them over the ocean in a little boat of bronze with gilt oars. There is a pile of stones beside him in the boat. He puts a stone in his sling and sends it humming at the sea birds, and stuns them without killing them, then lets them go. He does a feat with his jaws between his hands, faster than the eye can follow, and tunes his voice to bring the birds down a second time. Then he rouses them again. Conchobor says he pities the country the boy is heading for, and that if one of their young boys can do that, their grown men could grind the Ulstermen into dust. Someone must go and not let him ashore.
Conchobor picks Condere, who has good sense and eloquence. Condere speaks to the boy, first plainly and then in verse, but the boy will give his name to no man and make way for no man. Conall Cernach goes next, because no one makes little of Ulster's honour while he lives. The boy sends a stone into the sky, and the roar of its thunder knocks Conall headlong. Before he can rise the boy has the shield-strap tied around his arms. Then the whole army is put to shame.
So Cúchulainn goes down. Emer has her arm round his neck and tells him it is his own son, and that if he is really Connla, the boy is Aife's one son. He tells her to be quiet and says that whoever he is, he must kill him for the honour of Ulster.
The boy climbs onto two standing stones to reach him, and without moving a foot thrusts Cúchulainn three times between them, so that his feet sink into the stone. They go into the sea to drown each other. Cúchulainn finishes it with the gae bolga, which Scáthach taught to no one but him. He carries the boy out, and lays him down before the men of Ulster and tells them it is his son.
Events here
- Seven years to the day after Cúchulainn left Aife, the men of Ulster are gathered at Tracht Esi when a boy comes toward them over the ocean in a little boat of bronze with gilt oars. In The Death of Aife's One Son. Involves: Cúchulainn, Aife, Connla.
- The boy stuns the sea birds with his sling and lets them go, then brings them down a second time with his voice, and Conchobor says someone must go out and not let him ashore. In The Death of Aife's One Son. Involves: Connla, Conchobor.
- Condere mac Echach meets the boy on the strand and begs him to give his name, and the boy refuses and tells Condere to go back and say he will fight them singly or together. In The Death of Aife's One Son. Involves: Condere mac Echach, Connla.
- Conall Cernach goes out to meet the boy, and the boy knocks him headlong with the thunder of a stone sent into the sky and ties the shield-strap around his arms. In The Death of Aife's One Son. Involves: Conall Cernach, Connla.
- Emer begs Cúchulainn not to kill his own son, and he tells her to be quiet and goes down to meet the boy for the honour of Ulster. In The Death of Aife's One Son. Involves: Emer, Cúchulainn, Connla.
- The boy climbs onto two standing stones and thrusts Cúchulainn three times between them, his feet sinking into the stone, and the place gets its name from the mark. In The Death of Aife's One Son. Involves: Connla, Cúchulainn.
- In the sea Cúchulainn kills the boy with the gae bolga, carries him ashore, and names him as his son before the people of Ulster. In The Death of Aife's One Son. Involves: Cúchulainn, Connla.
- The boy salutes each man in turn, saluting his father last, and dies, and no calf in Ulster is let go to its cow for three days and nights. In The Death of Aife's One Son. Involves: Connla, Cúchulainn.
His feet sank in the stone up to the ankle. The marks of his feet are there still, which is why the people of Ulster call it Tráig, or Tracht, Esi, the Strand of the Mark.
Connections
Characters connected to this place
Chapters that mention this place
Related places
- Emain Macha (Conchobor's fort, home of the Ulstermen who came to the strand)
- Ulster (The province whose men were gathered on the strand)