Irish Vampire-Dearg-Due by Marjabella La Fey

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

The dearg-due is known by several names including dearg-dul, dearg-dur, dearg-dililat and dearg-diulai. There have been several translations of the name to English, including "red blood sucker" and "drinker of human blood". Whichever name and translation is correct, one thing is known - this Irish vampire dates back to pre-Celtic days.


The story of the Dearg-due begins quite tragically:

Once there was a fair maiden named Dearg-due who was so beautiful that she was known throughout the country. She could have married any man that she wanted, but fell in love with a local peasant. This was unacceptable to her father, who forced her into an arranged marriage with a wealthy man to secure the financial future of his family. This
new husband treated Dearg-due quite badly and she eventually committed suicide. She was buried in a small churchyard, supposedly located near Strongbow's Tree, in the village of Waterford. One night, to avenge her fate, Dearg-due rose from the grave and lured her father and
husband to their deaths.

It is believed that Dearg-due rises from the grave to seduce men and lure them to their deaths by draining their blood. She is always in the form of a beautiful woman. Legend differs on how often she rises from the grave: some say she returns with every full moon, others a few times a year, while others say she rises but once a year on the anniversary of her death. Most versions of the Dearg-due story claim that she can transform into a bat-like creature, while the other versions make no mention of shapeshifting.

Some legends say she does not drink blood, but sucks out the life force, until they slowly withered and died.

According to legend, the only way to defeat Dearg-due is to pile stones on her grave. While this will not 'kill' her, it will prevent her from rising and hold her at bay. Some legends say you can only escape if you replace yourself with another victim, thus continuing the circle of death.

Those who back the argument that "Dracula" is based upon the Dearg-due, argue that Stoker had never travelled to Eastern Europe, so he would only know the beliefs of the areas from travellers. They go on to say that "Dracula" was written during Ireland's great "Celtic Revival". They believe that Stoker took the name "Dracula" from Dreach-Fhoula, pronounced droc'ola, and means "bad or tainted blood". The Du'n Dreach-Fhoula or the Castle of the Blood Visage is supposed to be a fortress guarding the pass in the Magillycuddy reeks in Kerry and is believed to be inhabited by blood-drinking fairies.

Dearg-due theorists also point to Abhartach as an inspiration. Abhartach was a blood-drinking noble chieftain.

On the other side of the argument are Irish mythologists who say that the recorded Celtic stories bear no mention of the Dearg-due at all. However, they can't explain the persistence of the oral stories of this Irish vampire.