AHC Survivng Druidic Religion

By 500 A.D., druidism per se is a dead thing. Present only, in a really transformed form in a politically divided gaelic world (form that had not that much to do with "classical" druidism), in a world where christianism was politically hegemonic and supported by relativly important and stable entities, it was doomed to disappear sooner or later.

That said : I recently proposed Galileo this idea : as druidism virtually disappeared from continental Europe after that Roman authorities repressed then make it disappearby force; what if an anti-roman reaction made an early medieval "neo-druidism" appear in Ireland, having absorbated roman and possibly orthodox concepts?

Of course, the result wouldn't last for very long but could last more than IOTL (some sort western Lithuanian equivalent, while the comparison is ill-fitting)
 
I think you have a real problem with having ancient druidism survive for any lengthy period of time, and that's a problem that most of the old classical polytheisms are going to have, at least if were referring to the pantheons like Druidism or the Roman ones that acted as a support of the social order. This may not apply as much to the followings of your Isis, Magna Mater, Mithras, et al..

Remember, as modern as the classical Mediterranean will occasionally seem, it was a very, very, different world when it came to core cultural assumptions. That you'd give the tiniest of craps about the dignity of the individual, or some inherent equality of people, or other notions that we consider baseline normal would be utterly alien to most of the ancient world. Even some of the quotable bits from ancient Athens or the Roman Republic are from a social context that could often be characterized as "so social darwinist it would make Paul Ryan/Ayn Rand blush." There were hierarchies, those above could crap on those below with only the minimal bit of compunction - and without even having to pretend it was for the those below's own good, or some part of a just society, etc.

For a huge slice of the social order, all these religions offer is a vague sense that if the gods are appeased, your lot in life wont get any worse. In the rough marketplace of ideas that's religious conversion the Abrahamic faiths can make a higher bid: if the single god is appeased, your life may get better, if not now then certainly after you die. In addition, your overlords will have to make some notional gestures towards providing some reason why they're atop you in the pecking order, and even occasionally pretend to give you some benefit of it, perhaps by chasing off the odd Viking or to.

There's very little the old polytheisms in the form they were in in Europe two thousand years ago can offer against that. Which is probably why you see them fade when the alternatives start to spread. (The Dawkins contingent may now have at me for suggesting that monotheism may have been something other than an utter evil, only believed by stupid stupid people from stupidsville.)
 
With that late POD, it's pretty much impossible.

Ignoring the OP, I think you'd basically need to have a POD before Christianity got a hold on Britain. In fact, what would really need to happen is for Roman culture and religion to never become dominant.

Here's my idea: Boudicca's revolt succeeds. Maybe the Romans troops sent to Wales end up with their version of the Teutoburg Forest, so the Briton advantage in numbers becomes overwhelming. Boudicca conquers every Roman settlement and is crowned Queen of the Britons. The Romans decide to give up on ever conquering the British Isles. They do trade with the Britons, and maybe even set up trading posts, but never again do they invade. As such, individual ideas and technologies do make the crossing, but the native culture is thoroughly British.

Here is where I think the best chance for the Druidic faith to endure lies. Boudicca herself would probably resist importing anything Roman, but her successors might think otherwise. Let's say that by 150, writing has spread to Britain. At this point, they might start writing down their legends and myths. And there would be an opportunity for a clever king, probably facing tension among his chiefs, to use religion to reassert central control. He codifies the Druidic religion, establishing a formalized hierarchy. A key element is that he deifies Boudicca, giving his dynasty divine power.

Now we have much of Britain under a single king who rules by divine right. And it's not even 200 CE. Based on this, there's a good chance for the Druidic religion to endure. A key element is a cultural divide between Britain and the rest of Europe.
 
With that late POD, it's pretty much impossible.

Ignoring the OP, I think you'd basically need to have a POD before Christianity got a hold on Britain. In fact, what would really need to happen is for Roman culture and religion to never become dominant.

Here's my idea: Boudicca's revolt succeeds. Maybe the Romans troops sent to Wales end up with their version of the Teutoburg Forest, so the Briton advantage in numbers becomes overwhelming. Boudicca conquers every Roman settlement and is crowned Queen of the Britons. The Romans decide to give up on ever conquering the British Isles. They do trade with the Britons, and maybe even set up trading posts, but never again do they invade. As such, individual ideas and technologies do make the crossing, but the native culture is thoroughly British.

Here is where I think the best chance for the Druidic faith to endure lies. Boudicca herself would probably resist importing anything Roman, but her successors might think otherwise. Let's say that by 150, writing has spread to Britain. At this point, they might start writing down their legends and myths. And there would be an opportunity for a clever king, probably facing tension among his chiefs, to use religion to reassert central control. He codifies the Druidic religion, establishing a formalized hierarchy. A key element is that he deifies Boudicca, giving his dynasty divine power.

Now we have much of Britain under a single king who rules by divine right. And it's not even 200 CE. Based on this, there's a good chance for the Druidic religion to endure. A key element is a cultural divide between Britain and the rest of Europe.

But without Rome breathing down their necks, would the many dozens of warlords and pocket kingdoms in Great Britain ever get to unifying completely? Also, would the Romans take such a flagrant defiance of their will lying down? Even after Teutoberg Forest, the Romans still sent Germanicus to get back the eagles and knock a few heads just so the patricians sitting in Rome could feel better about themselves.
 
Furthermore, even before the Gallic Wars, Druidism as an institution seem to have declined politically and socially, with Druids agreeing to share their knowledge to non-initiates, celtic leaders obviously ignoring their position, etc.

You may actually need a II century BC PoD to make original Druidism survival a thing.
 
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