- This page is about the character from Selkie-History. For the Ysbryd, see here.
Gwen Lách of the Tribe of Galway was a Selkie-Maiden and soldier during the times of The Crusade (1280-1325). She single-handedly broke the Siege of Cuan in 1300, then led the Selkie in retaking their lands from the Christian Invaders. In 1345, she became a member of the Elder Council for her Tribe, the Tribe of Galway. She died peacefully in her bed in 1350.
In 1489, she was admitted into the Halls of Heroes.
Biography
Origins
Gwen Lách is one of these historical figures, which appear on the forefront of history one moment, without prelude, without preamble, without any connections to the established structures. That does not mean, that she comes out of the blue, the Lách-Family first appears in the records during the Age of High Kings in the usual sources: Tax lists, mustering lists and Learg's cadastres. They make only a comparatively small imprint, especially during the Kings' Rule. They are listed as the owners of a number of fortified farmsteads and got into action several times during the Raiders' Golden Age.
Their actions, however, mostly fall into the area of Learg and thus the are south of Lake Mór. It would take a few centuries, and land acquisitions, for the center of the Family to move closer to Scilly, but their ancestral seat Marcra Castle is mentioned first in a chronicle from 911, around the same time as the Sack of Fortham.
In 1000, the Warlord Kennet Adharc, the Woodstalker started a far-reaching raid from the Great Woods, but when he entered the Trossach, the Lách-Family was among the local magnates to oppose him and defeat him in a climactic battle in 1001.
In 1280, the Crusade began.
The Galway-Maiden
The Lách-Family and the Trossach as a whole were mostly unaffected by the Crusade at first, on the contrary,
- Siege of Cuan (1299-1300): Commands her first larger battle as she reinforces the City with a force of five hundred horsemen and is able to lift the siege.
Character
- At a place called Fuigutóga, I saw a whole army ready to run. A Galway-Maiden rode forward, Rhiannon's Banner high in the wind - and steadied the line. That was her. Our Gwenny.
- - Eoin Carrha of the Tribe of Galway, about the Battle of Fuigutóga, 1305.
Gwen's preferred weapons were bow and arrow, although she is said to have been quite well with the lance as well.
After the raid on her home village by Christian Crusaders, Gwen developed an unfathomable, cold hate for Christians, no matter their station.
Cultural Adaptations
In 2020, Gwen Cróimiam of the Tribe of Cork played her in the movie Cailibo, released for the international market as The Cowgirl, with her sister doubling as her stunt double.
Personal Relations
Family and Children
The Lách-Family, of which for example Leonard Lách of the Tribe of Galway is a part of, claims direct ancestry of hers.