Introduction: The Mortal Inheritors
As the Tuatha Dé Danann faded into the mists of the Otherworld, a new people approached the shores of Ireland. They were not gods, giants, or magical beings — they were humans, yet destined to become kings. These were the Milesians, the last of Ireland’s mythic civilizations and the ones who would finally lay the foundations for the Irish people as we know them today.
They came not as wanderers or conquerors alone, but as the heirs of prophecy. Their tale closes the mythological age and begins the legendary history of Ireland’s Gaelic identity.
Who Were the Milesians?
The Milesians were descended from Míl Espáine (“Soldier of Spain”), whose sons led the great migration to Ireland. According to myth, they traced their lineage to Scythia, through Egypt (where they allied with the daughter of Pharaoh), eventually settling in Spain before making their final voyage to Ireland.
Guided by Ith, an early explorer and brother of Míl, they arrived on Irish soil after hearing of a beautiful and fertile land to the north. Ith was slain by the Tuatha Dé Danann upon his arrival, prompting Míl’s sons — Éber, Érimón, and Amergin — to launch a full expedition to avenge his death and claim the land he had praised.
The Prophecy and the Promise
The Tuatha Dé Danann were aware of a prophecy that Ireland would eventually belong to the descendants of Míl. Rather than meet them only with force, they agreed to a spiritual challenge.
The Tuatha, being magical, proposed that the Milesians leave the island, sail nine waves away, and return if they could breach the magical storm they would conjure. The Milesians accepted the challenge and returned — aided by Amergin, the druid-poet, who calmed the storm with one of Ireland’s earliest mythic poems: The Song of Amergin, invoking the spirit of the land itself.
Battle for Ireland and Division of the Land
After overcoming the magical challenge, the Milesians met the Tuatha Dé Danann in battle. Though there were conflicts and losses — notably the deaths of Éber Donn and the Tuatha queens Banba, Fódla, and Ériu — the Milesians emerged as victors.
Out of respect for Ériu (the last queen of the Tuatha), they named the land after her — Éire, which became Ireland.
The island was divided:
- Éber Finn took the south
- Érimón took the north
- Their descendants later became the High Kings of Ireland
Thus, the Milesians became the rulers of the mortal world, while the Tuatha Dé Danann faded into the sídhe (mounds), becoming the spirit-folk who would forever dwell beneath the hills.
The Legacy of the Milesians
The Milesians mark the bridge between myth and history. They are both:
- The last mythical invaders, and
- The first human ancestors of the Irish Gaels
Their sons and descendants appear in the Annals of the Four Masters, the Book of Leinster, and medieval Irish genealogies, tying Ireland’s mythic past to the real dynasties that followed.
Their story brings together all that came before — the loss of the Cesairians, the hope of the Partholonians, the bravery of the Nemedians, the resilience of the Fir Bolg, and the magic of the Tuatha Dé Danann — and passes it forward into the human world.
Conclusion: The Beginning of Irish People
The Milesians did not vanish into myth. They became the bloodline, the voice, the heritage of Ireland. Through them, the legendary gives way to the historical — druids become scholars, kings become rulers, and stories become nationhood.
In every Irish surname, every Gaelic word, every ancient song sung on a green hillside, the Milesians live on. They are not just part of the myth — they are its fulfillment. And in their footsteps, the story of Ireland truly begins.