Danish apology a hard act to follow..!
ARE the Danes trying to put pressure on the British to follow their example?! In a curious statement yesterday, according to the Evening Echo, the Danish government “expressed its regret over the Viking invasion of Ireland more than 1,000 years ago”. The story continues: “In a fit of diplomacy sparked by the sense of occasion, Danish Culture Minister Brian Mikkelson was moved to extend a surprise olive branch. In Denmark we are certainly proud of this ship, but we are not proud of the damages to the people of Ireland that followed in the footsteps of the Vikings,” Mr Mikkelson said. “But the warmth and friendliness with which you greet us today and the Viking ship show us that, luckily, it has all been forgiven.” It reminded me of the Harry Enfield character Jürgen The German, the German tourist in England who can’t stop “apologising for his country’s actions during ze Var”. The belated near apology came as thousands gathered to watch a replica Norse warrior ship pull into Dublin’s Docklands after an epic voyage across the North Sea (see Pete’s posts).
“”Have a read about partition of India – great Imperial success…not.â€
Funny then that both countries are celebrating it. And the British didn’t want to partition it – the locals did.”
Don’t dispute any of that but it was rushed, half a million people were killed and Kashmir split in two.
“the contested origins of the patron saint of Ireland? ”
I went to the horse’s mouth – the Catholic encyclopedia
The armada and Ireland is looked at in some detail in this essay Paul
http://www.johnriley-sr.net/Myth%20of%20the%20Black%20Irish.htm
Thanks for the Link to Prospect magazine.
We should introduce a thread like this more frequently. It’s a wonderful MOPEfest, and we can all get involved!
Tough to beat an English friend of mine in Germany who, every time I visit him, complains about foreigners…
I’m not so sure about all this DNA business that claims that nearly everyone (except Gay Byrne and Willie Frazer of course) are descendants of Genghis Khan.
That might mean that eventually, because of my weekend invasion of Pontypridd in 1976, practically everyone in Wales would be claiming maintenance allownce from me. I wouldn’t have enough left over from the pension for my weekly therapeutic visit to Mlles. Fifi and Trixibelle.
Dewi is already claiming ancestry through our common links with Sweaty Betty. My solicitor is robustly defending this and any such claims.
For the record Sweaty Betty’s was Pontypridd’s famous Indian Restaurant. The finest Curries this side of Amritsar….
An apology from Danish Culture Minister, Brian Mikkelson, is good enough for me. No bother mate, don’t worry your barey!! “It was probably the greatest invasion in the world – Mine’s a Carlesberg”
The Inuit beat them in Greenland u know – fascinating (to sad geeks) tale of how the Norse and Inuit cultures clashed in the 11- 15th centuries.
http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/greenland/
“For the record Sweaty Betty’s was Pontypridd’s famous Indian Restaurant.”
In a similar vein – Is The Rupali that features so frequently in Viz for real ?
Gréagóir,
scrÃobh tú..”Hence the similarities of the Galway ‘houcair’ boat and a ‘dhow’ of the Middle east”
Breathnaigh ar húlcéir. Breathnaigh ar dhow. Breathnaigh ar hoeker ón ÃsiltÃr agus déanaigh suas t’intinn.
Cupla focal eile
dorú
bád
seol
stiúr
trosc.
You’ll find their origins in the lonely fjords of Norway.
The Danes would be better off apologising for Carlsberg Special Brew.
There is a new book being issued in the fall;
The Great Partition – India and Pakistan.
I’ve read two very favourable reviews.
“Is The Rupali that features so frequently in Viz for real ?”
Oh, yes, Mr Cruimh, most assuredly so. Real hot curry, real poppadum, real special Indian lager and really free mango chutney for all orders over only £10. Plus many nice girls are also coming here. Very nice. (No dogs. No Irish after pubs close.) God bless you, sir.
Good to see you on form Rory! Funny enough my Ma was on holiday one weekend in Pontypridd in 1976. Are you worth a few quid, or would the inheritance have too many claimants to be worthwhile?
Eranu
I watched the programme it was hilarious! That eedjit Bushel’s from the Sun’s face was a picture when they told him he was 31.4589% African. You could almost here him mentally calling himself a jigaboom or however nice fella’s like him refer to blacks. I was in tears of laughter also at the shadenfraude of the white supremacist discovering she was part East/west Asian? Eerily enough Carol Thatcher was the whitest of white, wonder if Maggie had the power to change her genes as well as her accent.
An Bearnach
Thanks for the info! I am a bit of a WW2 buff but have never looked into this story. I knew of the story from a young age(my ma again) and enjoyed the romanticism of a smaller nation outwitting her evil bigger next door neighbour. I was also aware that many Danes who were attracted to the idea of a united Aryan Europe joined the SS Viking. I would still rather view the civil resistance of the Danes as my abiding memory rather than a few wayward sons exploits with the Nazi shilling. Much like I would rather keep to the black Irish/Spanish story. My belief in it has left me many happy memories of romancing Spanish/S. American ladies pre-present long term relationship.
If you ever get a chance watch the blood of the Vikings series. Brilliant! And probably one of the last opportunities to trace our gene pool before it is submerged from eastern Europe and Africa.
Will first minister apologise to himself for what his ancestors did to themselves?
On Viking placenames they aren’t all just down south you know, don’t forget there’s Carling fjord and Strang fjord up north too.
“On Viking placenames they aren’t all just down south you know, don’t forget there’s Carling fjord and Strang fjord up north too.”
And not forgetting Løndønderryj too
The minister is saying that he did NOT apologise for what the Vikings done then.
http://havhingsten.weblog.dk (second posting – the “En undskyldning for vikingernes hærgen – eller hvad? Dag 46.”.
Half way down that posting inbetween the start of it and the first image, he basically says the vikings done what they did, they were brutal but that is how you won wars at the time and he doesnt feel the need to apologise for what happened 1000 years ago. He says Ireland and Denmark are close culturally and in other ways, but there is no apology.
“And not forgetting Løndønderryj too”
Now that was good.
‘Breathnaigh ar húlcéir. Breathnaigh ar dhow. Breathnaigh ar hoeker ón ÃsiltÃr agus déanaigh suas t’intinn.’
True Páid, there are similarities between the Galway húicéar and the Dutch bád.
But have a look at these two links below.
Galway húicéar:
http://images.google.ie/images?gbv=2&svnum=10&hl=en&q=Galway+hooker&btnG=Search+Images
Dhow of the middle east:
http://images.google.ie/images?gbv=2&svnum=10&hl=en&q=Dhow&btnG=Search+Images
What Bob Quinn suggests in his book ‘The Atlantean Irish’ is that Ireland was never an isolated island as such and that there was always a flow of people to and fro, visiting our shores, dating back thousands of years. That the La Tene/Halstatt ‘Celts’ just didn’t arrive into town around 500 BC bringing all the trappings of Gaelic language and culture. What he suggests is that there is a more exotic aspect to the ancient culture of the island; that people not only visited Ireland from Britain and Europe but as far afield as North Africa and the Middle East, via the sea trading routes. He does make reference of course to the ‘Vikings’ but that is later history.
To reinforce that these ties existed there is the example of ancient stone carvings (the distinguishing spirals) found in Tassile, Algeria similar to those found on the great prehistoric stone at Newgrange. Also there is the example of the Barbery ape skeleton found during archaeolological excavations at the ancient fort at Emhain Macha (Navan Fort). How did it reach these shores?
The Irish language itself is somewhat unique, like the other old languages of the Atlantic fringe; Scots, Welsh, Cornish, Manx, Basque etc…and there can be found no traces of such similar ancient ‘Celtic’ languages on mainland Europe, suggesting that such isolated languages are even older than what was thought.
There is also the connection between the Coptic Christian monks seeking solace in such isolated place as Skellig Michael thus originally bringing their unique brand of Christianity to Ireland first, (before St.Paddy) thus heavily influencing the ‘Celtic’ church as it became known.