Early Irish Lyrics: Eighth to Twelfth Century

1956

Central PB1351 E33

Oxford: Clarendon Press

Buile Suibhne (The Madness/Frenzy of Sweeny) tells the story of Sweeny, pagan King of Dal Araidhe in Ulster, whose ill-tempered actions are punished with a curse. Sweeny becomes mad and travels through Ireland, living in tree tops like a bird and composing poems about his location and fate. As ‘Suibne in the Woods’ opens, Sweeny comes to rest on a branch.