Name Index

To

Were there Druids in Devon?

Trans. Devon. Assoc. 1880, Vol XII, pp.228-242.

by

R.N. Worth

Prepared by Michael Steer

The paper was presented at the Association’s July 1880 Totnes meeting. Druids were a high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. They were described as religious leaders, legal authorities, adjudicators, lore-keepers, medical practitioners and political advisors. They have left no written accounts. While reported to have been literate, they are thought to have been prevented by doctrine from recording their knowledge in written form. Their beliefs and practices are attested in some detail by their contemporaries from other cultures, for example, the Romans and the Greeks. The author concludes that as far as Devon, and indeed the whole West of England, is concerned, neither history, nor tradition, nor folk-lore, nor archaeology, afford the slightest trace of their existence. The article, from a copy of a rare and much sought-after journal can be downloaded from the Internet Archive. Google has sponsored the digitisation of books from several libraries. These books, on which copyright has expired, are available for free educational and research use, both as individual books and as full collections to aid researchers.