Priestess of Avalon Read online

  Priestess of Avalon

  Marion Zimmer Bradley

  * * *

  CONTENTS

  · PEOPLE IN THE STORY

  · PLACES

  · PROLOGUE

  · Part One—THE WAY TO LOVE

  · Part One—THE WAY TO POWER

  · Part Three— THE WAY TO WISDOM

  To our grandchildren

  * * *

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  This is the story of a legend.

  The provable facts about Helena are few in comparison with the wealth of stories that have attached themselves to her name. We know that she was the consort of Constantius and the honoured mother of Constantine the Great, and that she had some association with the town of Drepanum. We know that she owned property in Rome and that she made a visit to Palestine, and that is all.

  But wherever she went, myths sprang up behind her. She is honoured in Germany and Israel and Rome, where she is hailed as a saint in the churches that bear her name. Medieval hagiography makes her the great discoverer of relics, who brought the heads of the three Wise Men to Cologne, the Robe Jesus wore to Trier, and the True Cross to Rome.

  But she holds a special place in the legends of Britian, where it is said that she was a British princess who married an emperor. She is believed to have lived in York and in London, and to have established roads in Wales. Some even identify her with the goddess Nehalennia. Did these stories arise because Constantius and Constantine both had such strong connections with Britain, or could she have originally come from that isle?

  If so, perhaps it is not so great a stretch to link her with the mythology of Avalon, and add one more legend to the rest.

  Marion Zimmer Bradley and I began this work together, as we have worked together before, but it was left to me to complete it. At the end of her life Marion attended a Christian church, and yet she was my first high priestess in the ancient mysteries. In telling the story of Helena, who also walked between the Christian and the pagan worlds, I have tried to remain faithful to Marion's teachings.

  In the creation of this book, Marion's was the inspiration and origin. The historical legwork was mine.

  Among the many sources which were useful I should list: Fry's Roman Britain; Gibbon's classic Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, which includes all the gossip; The Later Roman Empire, by A.H.M. Jones; Robin Lane Fox's fascinating Pagans and Christians; and The Aquarian Guide to Legendary London, edited by John Matthews and Chesca Potter, particularly the chapter on the Goddesses of London by Caroline Wise of the Atlantis Bookstore. More specifically, I relied on Constantine the Great, by Michael Grant, and Jan Willem Drijvers' classic, Helena Augusta; and for Helena's journey and the reinvention of the Holy Land, Holy City, Holy Places?, by P.W.L. Walker. The hymn in chapter thirteen was written by St Ambrose in the fourth century.

  I would like to express my gratitude to Karen Anderson for working out the astronomical configurations in the third century skies, and to Charline Palmtag for helping me with their astrological interpretation. My thanks also to Jennifer Tifft, for enabling me to make an extra trip to England and find the chapel of St Helena in York, to Bernhard Hennen, for taking me to Trier, and to Jack and Kira Gillespie for showing me Cumae and Pozzuoli.

  Diana L. Paxson

  Feast of Brigid, 2000

  * * *

  PEOPLE IN THE STORY

  ^ »

  *

  = historical figure

  ()

  = dead before story begins

  *

  Aurelian —Emperor, 270-275

  Aelia—a young priestess, trained with Helena

  *

  Allectus—Finance Minister to Carausius, later Emperor of Britannia, 293-6

  Arganax—Arch-Druid during Helena's youth

  *

  Asclepiodotus—Constantius's Praetorian Prefect

  Atticus—Constantine's Greek tutor

  *

  Carausius—Emperor of Britannia, 287-293

  *

  Carus—Emperor, 282-3

  *

  Carinus—older son of Carus, emperor, 283—284

  Ceridachos—Arch Druid when Dierna becomes High Priestess

  Cigfolla—a priestess of Avalon

  *

  Claudius II—Emperor, 268-270, Constantius's great-uncle

  Corinthius the Elder—Helena's tutor

  Corinthius the Younger—master of a school in Londinium

  Julius Coelius—[King Coel] Prince of Camulodunum, father of Helena

  *

  Constantia (I)—daughter of Constantius and Theodora, married to Licinius

  *

  Constantia (II)—daughter of Constantine and Fausta

  *

  Constans—third son of Constantine and Fausta

  *

  Constantine [Flavius Valerius Constantinus]—son of Helena, Emperor, 306-337

  *

  Constantine (II)—eldest son of Constantine and Fausta

  *

  Constantius Chlorus [Flavius Constantius]—consort of Helena, Caesar and later Augustus, 293-306

  *

  Julius Constantius—second son of Constantius and Theodora

  *

  Constantius (II)—second son of Constantine and Fausta

  *

  Crispus—Constantine's illegitimate son by Minervina

  Cunoarda—Helena's Alban slave

  *

  Dalmatius—son of Constantius and Theodora Dierna—Helena's second cousin, later Lady of Avalon

  *

  Diocletian—Senior Augustus, Emperor, 284-305

  Brasilia—cook in Helena and Constantius's household

  *

  Bishop Eusebius of Caesaria—Metropolitan Bishop of Palestine, a major writer of church history and later the biographer of Constantine.

  *

  Fausta—daughter of Maximian, wife of Constantine and mother of his legitimate children

  Flavius Pollio—a kinsman of Constantius

  *

  Galerius—Caesar, 293-305, Augustus, 305-311

  *

  Gallienus—Emperor, 253-268

  Ganeda—Helena's aunt, Lady of Avalon

  Gwenna—a maiden being trained on Avalon

  Haggaia—Arch Druid when Helena returns to Avalon

  *

  Julia Coelia Helena, later, Flavia Helena Augusta—(Eilan) daughter of Prince Coelius, consort of Constantius, mother of Constantine and priestess of Avalon

  *

  Helena the Younger ('Lena')—a noblewoman of Treveri, wife of Crispus

  Heron—a maiden being trained on Avalon

  Hrodlind—Helena's German maid

  (*

  Joseph of Arimathea—founder of the Christian community on the Tor)

  Katiya—a priestess of Bast in Rome

  Lactantius—a rhetorician and Christian apologist, tutor to Crispus

  Licinius—Caesar appointed by Galerius to replace Severus, later Augustus in the East, 313-324

  *

  Lucius Viducius—a pottery merchant trading between Gallia and Eburacum

  *

  Macarius—Bishop of Jerusalem

  Marcia—midwife who delivers Constantine

  Martha—a Syrian slave, healed by Helena

  *

  Maximian—Augustus of the West, 285-305

  *

  Maximus Daia—Caesar appointed by Galerius

  *

  Maxentius—son of Maximian, Augustus in Italy and North Africa, 306-312

  *

  Minervina—Constantine's Syrian concubine, mother of Crispus

  *

  Numerian—younger son of Carus, Emperor, 283—84
r />   Philip—Constantius's servant

  *

  Postumus—rebel Emperor of the West, 259-68

  *

  Probus—Emperor, 276-282

  *

  Quintillus—brother of the Emperor Claudius II, Constantius's great-uncle

  (

  Rian—High Priestess of Avalon, Helena's mother)

  Roud—a maiden being trained on Avalon

  *

  Severus—Caesar appointed by Galerius, executed by Maximian

  Sian—daughter of Ganeda, mother of Dierna and Becca

  Suona—a young priestess of Avalon

  Teleri—wife of Carausius and then of Allectus, later, High Priestess of Avalon

  *

  Tetricus & Marius—rebel co-emperors of the West, 271

  Tulia—a maiden being trained on Avalon

  *

  Victorina Augusta—mother of Victorinus and virtual ruler

  *

  Victorinus—rebel Emperor in the West, 268-270

  Vitellia—a Christian matron living in Londinium

  Wren—a maiden being trained on Avalon

  Helena's dogs: Eldri, Hylas, Favonius and Boreas, Leviyah

  * * *

  PLACES

  « ^ »

  BRITANNIA

  Aquae Sulis—Bath

  Avalon—Glastonbury

  Calleva—Silchester

  Gamulodunum—Colchester

  Cantium—Kent

  Corinium—Cirencester

  Eburacum—York

  Inis Witrin—Glastonbury

  Isurium Brigantum—Aldborough, Yorkshire

  Lindinis—Ilchester

  Lindum—Lincoln

  Londinium—London

  Sabrina estuary—the Severn

  the Summer Country—Somerset

  Trinovante lands—Essex

  Tamesis—the Thames

  Tanatus Insula—Isle of Thanet, Kent

  THE WESTERN EMPIRE

  Alpes—the Alps

  Aquitanica—southern France, Aquitaine

  Arelate—Arles, France

  Argentoratum—Strasburg, Germany

  Augusta Treverorum (Treveri)—Trier, Germany

  Baiae—Baia, Italy

  Belgica Prima—eastern France

  Belgica Secunda—the Low Countries

  Borbetomagus—Wurms, Germany

  Colonia Agrippinensis—Cologne, Germany

  Cumaea—Cumae, Italy

  Gallia—France

  Ganuenta—formerly an island where the River Schelde joins the Rhine in the Netherlands

  Germania Prima—lands just west of the Rhine, Koblenz to Basle

  Germania Secunda—lands just west of the Rhine, North Sea to Koblenz

  Gesoriacum—Boulogne, France

  Lugdunum—Lyons

  Mediolanum—Milan, Italy

  Moenus fluvius—the River Main, Germany

  Mosella fluvius—the River Moselle, France, Germany

  Nicer fluvius—the River Neckar, Germany

  Noricum—Austria south of the Danube

  Rhaetia—Southern Germany and Switzerland

  Rhenus fluvius—the Rhine

  Rhodanus fluvius—the Rhone

  Rothomagus—Rouen, France

  Treveri (Augusta Treverorum)—Trier, Germany

  Ulpia Traiana—Xanten, Germany

  Vindobona—Vienna, Austria

  THE EASTERN EMPIRE

  Aegeum—the Aegean

  Aelia Capitolina—Jerusalem

  Aquincum—Pest (Budapest), Hungary

  Asia—Western Turkey

  Bithynia et Pontus—northern Turkey

  Byzantium (later, Constantinople)—Istanbul

  Caesarea—a port city south of Haifa, Israel

  Carpatus Mountains—the Carpathians

  Chalcedon—Kadikoy, Turkey

  Dacia—Romania

  Dalmatia—Albania

  Danu, Danuvius—the Danube

  Drepanum (Helenopolis)—Hersek in northern Turkey

  Galatia and Cappadocia—Eastern Turkey

  the Haemus—Balkans

  Heracleia Pontica—Eregli, Turkey

  Hierosolyma—Jerusalem

  Illyria—Yugoslavia

  Moesia—Bulgaria

  Naissus—Nis in Romania

  Nicaea—Iznik, Turkey

  Nicomedia—Izmit, Turkey

  Pannonia—Hungary

  Rhipaean Mountains—the Caucausus

  Scythia—lands above the Black Sea

  Singidunum—Belgrade, Yugoslavia

  Sirmium—Mitrovica or Sabac on the Save, Serbia

  Thracia—southern Bulgaria

  * * *

  PROLOGUE

  « ^ »

  249 AD

  With sunset, a brisk wind had blown in from the sea. It was the season when farmers burn the stubble from their fields, but wind had swept away the haze that had veiled the heavens, and the Milky Way blazed a white road across the sky. The Merlin of Britannia sat on the Watcher's Stone at the top of the Tor, his eyes fixed on the stars. But though the glory of the heavens commanded his vision, it did not hold his entire attention. His ears strained to catch any sound that might come from the dwelling of the High Priestess on the slopes below.

  Since dawn she had been in labour. This would be Rian's fifth child, and her earlier babes had come easily. The birthing should not be taking so long. The midwives guarded their mysteries, but at sunset, when he had prepared for this vigil, he had seen the worry in their eyes. King Coelius of Camulodunum, who had called Rian to the Great Rite for the sake of his flooded fields, was a big man, fair-haired and massively built in the way of the Belgic tribes who had settled in the eastern lands of Britannia, and Rian was a little dark woman with the look of the faerie people who had been the first to dwell in these hills.

  It should be no surprise that the child Coelius had begotten was too large to come easily from the womb. When Rian found that he had got her with child, some of the older priestesses had urged her to cast it from her. But to do so would have negated the magic, and Rian told them she had served the Goddess too long not to trust in Her purposes.

  What purpose was there in this child's birth? The Merlin's old eyes scanned the heavens, seeking to comprehend the secrets written in the stars. The sun stood now in the sign of the Virgin, and the old moon, passing him, had been visible in the sky that morning. Now she hid her face, leaving the night to the glory of the stars.

  The old man huddled into the thick folds of his grey cloak, feeling the chill of the autumn night in his bones. As he watched the great wain wheel ever further across the sky and no word came, he knew that he was shivering not with cold, but with fear.

  Slow as grazing sheep, the stars moved across the heavens. Saturn gleamed in the south-west, in the Sign of Balance. As the hours drew on, the resolution of the labouring woman was wearing away. Now, at intervals, there would come a moan of pain from the hut. But it was not until the still hour just as the stars were fading that a new sound brought the Merlin upright, heart pounding—the thin, protesting wail of a newborn child.

  In the east the sky was already growing pale with the approach of day, but overhead the stars still shone. Long habit brought the old man's gaze upward. Mars, Jupiter and Venus stood in brilliant conjunction. Trained in the disciplines of the Druids since boyhood, he committed the positions of the stars to memory. Then, grimacing as stiffened joints complained, he got to his feet, and leaning heavily on his carven staff, made his way down the hill.

  The infant had ceased its crying, but as the Merlin neared the birthing hut, his gut tensed, for he could hear weeping from within. Women stood aside as he pushed back the heavy curtain that hung across the doorway, for he was the only male who by right could enter there.

  One of the younger priestesses, Cigfolla, sat in the corner, crooning over the swaddled bundle in her arms. The Merlin's gaze moved past her to the woman who lay on the bed, and stopped, for Rian, whose beauty had always
come from her grace in motion, was utterly still. Her dark hair lay lank upon the pillow; her angular features were already acquiring the unmistakable emptiness that distinguishes death from sleep.

  "How—" he made a little helpless gesture, striving to hold back his tears. He did not know whether or not Rian had been his own child by blood, but she had been a daughter to him.

  "It was her heart," said Ganeda, her features in that moment painfully like those of the woman who lay on the bed, although at most times the sweetness of Rian's expression had always made it easy to distinguish between the sisters. "She had laboured for too long. Her heart broke in the final effort to push the child from the womb."

  The Merlin stepped to the bedside and gazed down at Rian's body, and after a moment, he bent to trace a sigil of blessing on the cool brow.

  I have lived too long , he thought numbly. Rian should have been the one to say the rites for me.