It had no power over St. Guénolé, who awakened innocent Grallon and warned him to flee. Barely did the king’s great charger carry him through the waters as they surged in between the city walls. Dahut screamed in terror. Her father saw, and tried to save her. The saint told him he must not, for the weight of her sins would drag him down too; and she was swept away from his grasp. None but Grallon and Guénolé escaped, as Ys went under the waves.
Guénolé laid the doom on the city that it would remain sunken until a Mass was said in it upon a Good Friday. Dahut became a siren, haunting the coast, luring sailors to shipwreck among the many rocks thereabouts. Grallon gave up his crown and ended his days in the abbey of Landévennec which Guénolé had founded.
A later story relates how one mariner was borne beneath the water by certain strange swimmers. Somehow he did not drown, and they led him to the sunken city and into a church where a service was going on. He was afraid to give the responses, when no one else did. Afterward his guides brought him ashore and let him go; but first they asked sadly, “Why did you not say what you should have at the Mass? Then we would all have been released.”
Ys is still there under the sea.
Thus far the tradition. As for its origin, the prosaic fect is that stories about submerged towns are common along the Welsh and Cornish coasts. Folk from those parts could well have carried the idea with them during their massive emigration to Armorica in the fifth and sixth centuries. In the course of time it came to be associated with Grallon and with several of the host of Breton saints. On the other hand, the tale could conceivably have been a native one which the Bretons found when they arrived, and this we have assumed for our purposes.
Among the disagreements between versions of the legend, conspicuous is that concerning the site. Some accounts put Ys on the Baie de Douarnenez, others on the Baie d’Audierne, still others on the Baie des Trépassés. We have chosen the last of these.
Obviously we have made a good many more choices! First and foremost, we have imagined that there really was an Ys.
If so, when did it perish? Saints Corentin and Guénolé are assigned to the fifth and sixth centuries respectively; therefore they could not both have been involved. We picked the earlier era. (If nothing else, the farther back in time, the more plausible it is that no record would survive of the city and its destruction. At that, we have had to offer some explanation of why the Romans left none.) Therefore Corentin must needs assume the role that folklore gives to Guénolé. Besides, legend associates him with the founding of Quimper and makes St. Martin consecrate him its bishop.
Since no kingdom of Cornouaille existed at this time, our Grallon would have had to begin as the ruler of Ys, which must thus have been flourishing long before his birth. He in turn would have had no reason to start a settlement at what was to become Quimper until after the loss of his realm. The need for a new stronghold, in the chaos that was spreading through Gaul, would be clear to him if he was himself a Roman, as we have supposed.
From the first-century geographer Pomponius Mela we have adopted and adapted the Gallicenae. True, he describes them as vestal virgins, but with his own sources all being indirect, he was not necessarily right about this. The sixth-century historian Procopius gives an account of the Ferriers of the Dead; he says they took their unseen passengers from Gaul to Britain, but we depict men so engaged between Ys and the Île de Sein. The king who must win and defend his crown in mortal combat is best known from Lake Nemi, as described by Sir James Frazer in The Golden Bough. However, the practice has occurred elsewhere too, in various guises, around the world, so we could reasonably attribute it to Ys.
Aside from such modifications, logically required, we have stayed as close as possible to the legends. After all, this is a fantasy. Yet we have at the same time tried to keep it within the framework of facts that are well established.
For us it all began one day in 1979, when we were staying on a farm near Médréac in Brittany and Karen, on impulse, wrote the poem with which our story ends. Earlier in the same trip we had visited a number of Roman remains in England and stood on Hadrian’s Wall. Now somehow this came together with Ys, of which our surroundings reminded us, and the first dim outlines of the tale appeared. At home we thought and talked about it more and more often, until by 1982 our ideas were clear enough that we returned to Brittany for a look at sites we had not examined before. There followed about a year’s worth of book research, and then the actual writing—occasionally interrupted to meet other commitments—lasted into the spring of 1987. The whole business has been a strange and rewarding experience. We hope readers will enjoy what has come out of it.
GEOGRAPHICAL GLOSSARY
These equivalents are for the most part only approximations. For further details, see the Notes.
Abonae: Sea Mills.
Alba: Scotic name of what is now Scotland, sometimes including England and Wales.
Aquilo: Locmaria, now a district at the south end of Quimper.
Arelate: Aries.
Armorica: Brittany.
Audiarna: Audierne (hypothetical).
Augusta Treverorum: Trier.
Boand’s River: The River Boyne.
Bridge of Sena: Pont de Sein.
Britannic Sea (Oceanus Britannicus): The English Channel.
Britannia: The Roman part of Britain, essentially England and Wales.
Burdigala: Bordeaux.
Caesarodunum Turonum: Tours.
Caledonia: Roman name of Scotland.
Cape Rack: Pointe du Raz (hypothetical).
Cassel: Cashel.
Cimbrian peninsula: Jutland.
Clón Tarui: Clontarf, now a district of Dublin.
Condacht: Connaught.
Condate Redonum: Rennes.
Condevincum: A small city, now part of Nantes.
Confluentes: Quimper (hypothetical).
Corbilo: St. Nazaire.
Dalmatia: A province occupying, approximately, what is now much of Yugoslavia.
Dál Riata: A realm in Ulster, or its colony on the Argyll coast. Danastris: The River Dniester. Danuvius: The River Danube. Darioritum Venetorum: Vannes. Deva: Chester.
Dochaldun: An Osismiic village (imaginary). Dubris: Dover. Durocotorum: Reims. Eboracum: York.
Émain Macha: Seat of the principal Ulster kings, near present-day Armagh. Eriu: Early Gaelic name of Ireland. Etruria: Tuscany and northern Latium. Euxinus: The Black Sea. Fanum Martis: Corseul.
Gallia: Gaul, including France and parts of Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland.
Garomagus: A town at or near present-day Douarnenez (hypothetical).
German Sea (Oceanus Germanicus): The North Sea. Gesocribate: A seaport at or near the site of Brest. Gesoriacum: Boulogne.
Goat Foreland: Cap de la Chévre (hypothetical). Gobaean Promontory (Promontorium Gobaeum): Cap Sizun.
Hispania: Spain and Portugal. Histria: The area around what is now Trieste. Hivernia: Roman name of Ireland.
Illyricum: A Roman diocese (major administrative division) occupying, approximately, Greece and much of Yugoslavia.
Islands of Crows: The Channel Islands (hypothetical nickname).
Isca Silwrum: Caerleon. Jecta: The River Jet (hypothetical). Juliomagus: Angers. Lemovicium: Limoges. Liger: The River Loire.
Liguria: A region of Italy including Lombardy and present-day Liguria.
Lugdunensis Tertia: A Roman province comprising northwestern France.
Lugdunum: Lyons.
Mediolanum: Milan.
Moguntiacum: Mainz.
Mons Ferruginus: Mont Frugy (hypothetical).
Mumu: Munster.
Namnetum: See Portus Namnetum.
Neapolis: Naples.
Nemetacum: Arras.
Odita: The River Odet (hypothetical).
Osismia: The country of the Osismii, in western Brittany.
Pannonia: A Roman province occupying parts of Hungary, Austria, and Yugoslavia.
Pictavum: Poitiers.
Portus Namnetum: Nantes (in part).
Pyrenaei Mountains: The Pyrenees.
Qóiqet Lagini: Leinster (in part).
Qóiqet nUlat: Ulster.
Race of Sena: Raz de Sein.
Redonia: The country of the Redones, in eastern Brittany.
Redonum: See Condate Redonum.
Rhaetia: A Roman province occupying the eastern Alps and western Tyrol.
Rhenus: The River Rhine.
Roman Bay: Baie de Douarnenez (hypothetical).
Rotomagus: Rouen.
Ruirthech: The River Liffey.
Sabrina: The River Severn.
Samarobriva: Amiens.
Savus: The River Drava.
Scandia: The southern part of the Scandinavian peninsula.
Scot’s Landing: A fisher hamlet near Ys (imaginary).
Sena: Ile de Sein.
Stag Run: An Osismiic village (imaginary).
Stegir: The River Steir (hypothetical).
Tallten: Teltown, in County Meath, Ireland.
Temir: Tara.
Teutoburg Forest: Scene of a Roman military disaster at German hands in the reign of Augustus Caesar.
Treverorum: See Augusta Treverorum.
Turnacum: Tournay.
Turonum: See Caesarodunum Turonum.
Venetorum: See Darioritum Venetorum.
Vindoval: An Osismiic village (imaginary).
Vindovaria: A village in Britain (imaginary).
Vorgium: Carhaix.
Whalestrand: A fisher hamlet in western Brittany (imaginary).
Ys: City-state at the far western end of Brittany (legendary)
DRAMATIS PERSONAE
Where characters are fictional or legendary, their names are in Roman lower case; where historical (in the opinion of most authorities), in Roman capitals; where of doubtful or debatable historicity, in italics. When a full name has not appeared in the text, it is generally not here either, for it was of no great importance even to the bearer.
Aébell: A daughter of Cellach.
ALARIC: King of the Visigoths.
Amair: A daughter of Fennalis by Hoel.
Amreth Taniti: Commander of the surviving Ysan marines.
Anmureg maqq Cerballi: A sea rover from Mide.
Arban Cartagi: An Ysan Suffete, husband of Talavair, father of Korai.
Ardens, Septimius Cornelius: Praetorian prefect of Gallia, Hispania, and Britannia.
Aryagalatis maqq Irgalato: King of Dál Riata in Alba.
Apuleius Vero: A senator in Aquilo and a tribune of the city.
ARCADIUS, FLAVIUS: Augustus of the East. Bacca, Quintus Domitius: Procurator of Lugdunensis Tertia.
Bannon: Headman of Dochaldun.
Betha: Wife of Maeloch.
Bodilis: A Queen of Ys.
Boia: A daughter of Lanarvilis by Hoel.
Bomatin Kusuri: Former Mariner delegate to the Council of Suffetes in Ys.
Breccan: Eldest son of Niall, killed in battle at Ys.
Brennilis: Leader of the Gallicenae at the time of Julius and Augustus Caesar, responsible for the building of the sea wall and gate.
BRICIUS: Successor of Martinus; known today as St. Brice.
Budic: A legionary in Gratillonius’s detachment at Ys, killed by him in combat at the Wood of the King.
Cadoc Himilco: A young Ysan of Suffete family.
Cael Maqq Eriai: An ollam poet at Niall’s court.
Carsa: A young Gallo-Roman stationed in Ys, killed by Gratillonius in combat at the Wood of the King.
Cata: A female worker at the Apuleius manor house.
Cathual: Charioteer to Niall.
Catto: A fisherman from Whalestrand.
Catualorig: A former Bacauda.
Cellach maqq Blathmaic: The hostelkeeper at Clón Tarui.
Colconor: A former King of Ys, slain by Gratillonius.
CONSTANTINUS, CONSTANS: Elder son of Flavius Claudius Constantinus.
CONSTANTINUS, FLAVIUS CLAUDIUS: A Roman army officer in Britannia, later a usurper known as CONSTANTINUS III.
CONSTANTINUS, JULIANUS: Younger son of Flavius Claudius Constantinus.
CONUAL CORCC: Principal king in Mumu.
Corentinus: A holy man, chorepiscopus at Ys, later bishop of Confluentes and Aquilo; known today as St. Corentin.
CUNEDAG: A leader of the Votadini, settled in western Britannia to be an ally of Rome.
Cynan: (1) A legionar in Gratillonius’s detachment at Ys. (2) A centurion in Constantinus’s army.
Dahilis: A Queen of Ys, mother of Dahut.
Dahut: Daughter of Dahilis and Gratillonius.
Dion: A youth from Neapolis.
Doranius: A young man from Gesocribate.
Drach: Father of Vellano.
Drusus, Publius Flavius: A Britannic centurion under Maximus, later a settler in Armorica.
Einiaunus, Valerius: A Britannic official in Constantinus’s service.
Éndae Qennsalach: Principal king in Qóiqet Lagini.
Eochaid maqq Èndae: A son of Éndae, exiled for murder of a poet and implacable enemy of Niall.
Eódgan: A son of Niall.
Eppillus: A legionary in Gratillonius’s detachment at Ys, killed in action there.
Estar: A daughter of Gratillonius and Tambilis.
Esun: A son of Catto.
Étain: A female druid at Niall’s court.
Evirion Baltisi: A young Ysan sea captain.
Favonius: Gratillonius’s favorite horse.
Fennalis: A Queen of Ys.
Fogartach: A follower of Eochaid.
Forsquilis: A Queen of Ys, mother of Nemeta.
GAIN AS: A Roman general of Gothic origin.
Glabrio, Titus Scribona: Governor of Lugdunensis Tertia.
Goban: An Osismiic boatman and deacon to Corentinus.
Gradlon: An Armorican version of “Gratillonius.”
Grallon: An Ysan version of “Gratillonius.”
GRATIANUS: A legionary officer in Britannia, briefly claimant of the purple.
Gratillonius, Gaius Valerius: A Romano-Briton of the Belgic tribe, centurion in the Second Legion Augusta, later King of Ys.
Guilvilis: A Queen of Ys.
Gunnung Ivarsson: A Danic skipper and sea rover.
Hilketh Elliuni: Former Transporter delegate to the Council of Suffetes in Ys.
Hoel: King of Ys before Colconor.
HONORIUS, FLAVIUS: Augustus of the West.
Innloch: Father of Maeloch.
Johannes: Son of Julia and Cadoc.
Julia: Daughter of Lanarvilis and Gratillonius.
Korai: Granddaughter of Bodilis.
LAÉGARE: Youngest son of Niall.
Laidchenn maqq Barchedo: An ollam poet formerly at Niall’s court.
Lanarvilis: A Queen of Ys, mother of Julia.
Lavinia: A lady in Mediolanum.
Lorccan maqq Flandi: A Scotic warrior.
Lydris: Wife of Nagon Demari.
Maecius: Chorepiscopus at Aquilo, presently retired.
Maeloch: An Ysan fisher captain and formerly a Ferrier of the Dead.
Marcus: Son of Verania and Gratillonius.
MARCUS: A legionary officer in Britannia, briefly claimant of the purple.
Maria: Daughter of Verania and Gratillonius.
MARTINUS: Bishop of Turonum and founder of a monastery nearby; known today as St. Martin of Tours.
MAXIMUS, MAGNUS CLEMENS: Commander of Roman forces in Britannia, who later forcibly took power as co-Emperor but was overthrown and executed by Theodosius the Great.
Miraine: A daughter of Lanarvilis and Hoel.
Mongfind: Stepmother of Niall, long dead, said to have been a witch.
Morvanalis: A Queen of Ys, mother of Guilvilis.
Murena, Flaminius: Duke of the Armorican Tract.
Nagon Demari: A Suffete in Ys, self-exiled during Gratillonius’s reign and bitterly hostile to him.
Namma
: Cook in the Apuleius household.
Nath Í: Nephew, tanist, and eventual successor of Niall.
Nemain maqq Aedo: Late chief druid at Niall’s court.
Nemeta: Daughter of Forsquilis and Gratillonius.
NIALL MAQQ ECHACH, also known as NIALL OF THE NINE HOSTAGES: King at Temir and overlord of Mide.
Norom: A crewman of Maeloch’s.
Ogotorig: A hunter, formerly a Bacauda.
Olath Cartagi: An Ysan survivor who became an iron-maker.
Parnesius: A friend of Gratillonius in his youth.
Philippus: An exorcist in Turonum.
Quintilius: A courtier in Mediolanum.
RADAGAISUS: A Gothic warlord.
Ramas Tyri: Former Artisan delegate to the Council of Suffetes in Ys.
Riwal: A Durotrigian (from Britannia) who moved to Confluentes.
Rovinda: Wife of Apuleius.
Rufinus: A Redonian, formerly a Bacauda, henchman of Gratillonius.
Rullus, Septimius: A curial in Gesocribate.
Runa: Daughter of Vindilis and Hoel.
Salaun: An Armorican version of “Salomon.”
Salomon: Son of Rovinda and Apuleius.
Sasai: Birth name of Guilvilis.
Semuramat: A daughter of Tambilis and Gratillonius.
STILICHO, FLAVIUS: A Roman general, half Vandal by birth, who became effectively the dictator of the West Roman Empire.
Subne maqq Dúnchado: A follower of Eochaid.
SUCAT: A young holy man, later called Patricius; known today as St. Patrick.
Surach: A son of Catto.
Taenus Himilco: Father of Cadoc.
Talavair: A daughter of Bodilis and Hoel.
Tambilis: A Queen of Ys.
Tera: An Ysan countrywoman.
Tigernach maqq Laidchinni: A son and pupil of Laid-chenn, murdered by EOchaid.
Timbro: A follower of Ullus.
Tommaltach maqq Donngalii: A young Scotian living in Ys, killed by Gratillonius in combat at the Wood of the King.
Torna Èces: Greatest poet in Èriu, foster-father of Niall and Conual.
Tronan Siironai: Late husband of Runa.
Uail maqq Carbri: Henchman of Niall.
Udach: A servant of Gratillonius.
Ullus: A bully from Audiarna.
Una: Daughter of Bodilis and Gratillonius.
Usun: An Ysan fisherman, Maeloch’s mate on Osprey.
Vellano: A Redonian who moved to Confluentes.
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