The Kelts in Britain

Abstract

Sir John Rhŷs, whose name is justly honoured by all students of the history of Britain, is nevertheless indirectly responsible for much vague conjecture concerning the Keltic problem by English archaeologists. I write ‘English’ advisedly, for Irish archaeologists—with a profound knowledge of Keltic philology—have definitely refuted the theories propounded by Rhys and maintained in various modified forms by subsequent archaeologists in England. In Wales, the other Keltic country concerned, archaeology unfortunately remained up to recent times the happy hunting-ground of antiquaries whose knowledge of both archaeology and philology was very restricted. Her professional archaeologists, in more recent years, have been hampered by an ignorance of the philological problem and have therefore naturally subscribed to the point of view of the modern English school of thought. On the other hand, some Welsh philologists, often with little or no knowledge of the archaeological evidence, have ridiculed the theories advanced by Rhŷs and the later English writers on the subject. My present purpose is to submit to the readers of ANTIQUITY a case for relinquishing entirely the generally accepted attitude of modern English archaeology towards the Keltic problem.