St Mungo and Languoreth, The Lioness of Damnonia​ | Adam Ardrey

There is more to the story of the Fish and the Ring on Glasgow’s coat of arms than is commonly told: there was adultery, yes, but there was also assassination. The legend that has Languoreth’s brother ‘Merlin’ standing on the Necropolis Hill shouting down across the Molendinar Burn at St. Mungo, is founded on history. This is the man commemorated in Partick’s imaginative mural. In Finding Merlin (2007) and Finding Arthur (2013) Adam Ardrey has written about the history of Glasgow in the late 6th century and how it came to be buried in legend. These things and more will be the subjects of his talk during the 2026 St Mungo Festival.

Adam Ardrey FSA Scot is from Coatbridge. He is an advocate, retired British tribunal judge, Scottish tribunal chairman, author and previously worked in television.

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