How old is druidism

Unlike their ancient predecessors, no human sacrifice is involved. Indeed, Druidism is alive and well today and enjoying a late 20th-century revival of sorts. The Eisteddfod still celebrated annually in Wales, is held during the first week of August each year. Although the modern ceremony has veered more towards the cultural, rather than religious, celebration, the Eisteddfod remains true to its Druidic roots.

But just as the sacrificial rituals of the ancient Druids created controversy in ancient times, so today modern Druids find themselves at the centre of the debate. This controversy comes to a head around the 21st of June each year when modern Druids converge upon what is undoubtedly one of the most-visited tourist attractions in all of Britain to commemorate the summer solstice. English Heritage and The National Trust, who jointly manage the property are usually less than welcoming to these annual uninvited guests.

Stonehenge, which stood before even the original Druids may have gathered among its mysterious stones somehow puts the controversy into perspective.

Related: Stonehenge , Wales. Toggle navigation. Who were the Druids? Sun setting on Knowlton Church, in Cranborne. Subscribe here to receive British Heritage Travel's print magazine! Sign up to British Heritage Travel's daily newsletter here! Read more. BHT newsletter Subscribe to our Newsletter. You May Also Like. Most Read Most Recent. Surprising nicknames The Royals The Royals are just like any other family, which means they all hav Five Victorian buildings in Lond Here are five of London's most beautiful buildings built during the Prince Charles reads the weather Prince Charles The weatherman!

Queen Emma of Normandy found bur Are the remains of Queen Emma of Normandy among the 1, bones fou It certainly flourished in the British Isles and Gaul. Julius Caesar claimed that druidism originally came from Britain, and those who wished to study it in depth traveled there. Whether druidism truly originated in Britain is unknown. Additionally, it is possible that druids were found much farther afield.

Druidism is often associated with a people known as the Celts , and their settlements have been found as far east as modern-day Turkey. Today, it is often said that the druids practiced human sacrifice. This may not be accurate. Ancient sources indicate that druids served alongside several other classes that also performed spiritual functions. The identity and role of these other classes changed, depending on the culture and the time. How widespread human sacrifice was among the cultures that the druids served is another mystery.

For instance, in A. Cornelius Tacitus reported that after the Romans crushed the rebels they found widespread evidence of human sacrifice, a claim that may have been exaggerated to cast the druids in a negative light.

Did they worship nature or foment rebellion? Not much is known about the ancient social class of people known as Druids, but that has never kept people from speculating on their real nature.

The earliest detailed accounts of the Druids date back to the first century B. The word comes from a Latin transcription of the Celtic word for a social class of people among the ancient Celts who concerned themselves with prophecy and ritual. The pagan practitioners presented an existential threat to the Romans, who feared Druid power over the Celtic communities that Rome had conquered. Christianity began to make inroads into France and the British Isles in the first century A.

But Druids continued to pop up in medieval literature, suggesting that the pagan priests later became healers and magicians. Nonetheless, Druids have gone through several revivals over the millennia, including a Romantic-era resurgence and a 21st-century incarnation as Modern Druidism.

That year, a peat cutter found human remains in Cheshire, England. This was no ordinary find: Lindow Man, as he became known, had been preserved in the bog for nearly 2, years, and had apparently become a bog body after suffering head blows and being stabbed and strangled before being left for dead in the bog. His stomach contained mistletoe pollen , which led to the contentious speculation that he was ritually sacrificed , perhaps by Druids, or that he was himself a Druid prince.

Watch archaeologists piece together the story of Lindow Man. Even the term seems to have been a blanket designation for scholars, philosophers, teachers, and holy men concerned with nature, justice and magic.

All rights reserved. Why do we know so little about the Druids? Modern Druid leader Arthur Pendragon watches the sun rise during the winter solstice at Stonehenge. Despite what little is actually known about ancient Druidism, the practice has seen several revivals in modern times.