Blácaire mac Gofrith
Encyclopedia
Blácaire mac Gofrith in Old Norse Blákári Guðrøðsson, was King of Dublin. Son of Gofraid ua Ímair
, he was a great-grandson of Ímar, ancestor of the Uí Ímair
kindred which dominated the Scandinavia
nised and Norse-Gael regions of Britain
and Ireland
in the tenth century.
According to the Annals of Clonmacnoise
, Blácaire came to rule Dublin when his cousin Amlaíb Cuarán went to Northumbria
to assist Blácaire's brother Amlaíb mac Gofrith, King of York in 940. Amlaíb mac Gofrith died the following year and Amlaíb Cuarán became the next king of York, Blácaire remaining in Ireland
. The first report of his activity as king is a raid into the north of Ireland. He fought against Muirchertach mac Néill
's forces near Armagh
on 26 February 943, defeating and killing Muirchertach. Armagh was pillaged the following day.
In 944 Congalach mac Máel Mithig, King of Knowth
, together with the King of Leinster, sacked Dublin. The account of the sack in the Chronicon Scotorum
states that "four hundred foreigners fell in the taking of the fortress, and they burned it and brought away its jewels and treasures and prisoners". In the same year Amlaíb Cuarán and Blácaire's brother Ragnall were driven out of York. Amlaíb probably took refuge in the Kingdom of Strathclyde
, but was driven out and returned to Dublin in 945. Ragnall was killed attempting to retake York. Blácaire's position following the sack of Dublin appears to have been weak as he was expelled from the kingship and replaced by Amlaíb Cúarán.
Amlaíb and his ally Congalach of Knowth were defeated, with heavy loss among the Dubliners, by Ruaidrí ua Canannáin
at Slane
in 947. This defeat allowed Blácaire to regain control of Dublin. He did not remain in power for long as he was killed in 948, "by cunning" says the Chronicon Scotorum, and a thousand or more Dubliners killed or captured along with him, by Congalach.
He was succeeded as king in Dublin by Amlaíb Cuarán's brother Gofraid
.
Gofraid ua Ímair
Gofraid was a Norse-Gael king of Dublin and, for a short time, king of Northumbria...
, he was a great-grandson of Ímar, ancestor of the Uí Ímair
Uí Ímair
The Uí Ímair , or Dynasty of Ivar, were an enormous royal and imperial Norse dynasty who ruled Northern England, the Irish Sea region and Kingdom of Dublin, and the western coast of Scotland, including the Hebrides, from the mid 9th century, losing control of the first in the mid 10th, but the rest...
kindred which dominated the Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
nised and Norse-Gael regions of Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
in the tenth century.
According to the Annals of Clonmacnoise
Annals of Clonmacnoise
The Annals of Clonmacnoise are an early 17th-century Early Modern English translation of a lost Irish chronicle, which covered events in Ireland from pre-history to A.D. 1408...
, Blácaire came to rule Dublin when his cousin Amlaíb Cuarán went to Northumbria
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
to assist Blácaire's brother Amlaíb mac Gofrith, King of York in 940. Amlaíb mac Gofrith died the following year and Amlaíb Cuarán became the next king of York, Blácaire remaining in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. The first report of his activity as king is a raid into the north of Ireland. He fought against Muirchertach mac Néill
Muirchertach mac Néill
Muirchertach mac Néill , called Muirchertach of the Leather Cloaks , King of Ailech.-Family ramifications:Muirchertach belonged to the Cenél nEógain sept of the northern Uí Néill...
's forces near Armagh
Armagh
Armagh is a large settlement in Northern Ireland, and the county town of County Armagh. It is a site of historical importance for both Celtic paganism and Christianity and is the seat, for both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Ireland, of the Archbishop of Armagh...
on 26 February 943, defeating and killing Muirchertach. Armagh was pillaged the following day.
In 944 Congalach mac Máel Mithig, King of Knowth
Kings of Brega
-Overview:Brega took its name from Mag Breg, the plain of Brega, in modern County Meath, County Louth and County Dublin, Ireland. They formed part of the Uí Néill kindred, belonging to the Síl nÁedo Sláine branch of the southern Uí Néill. The kingdom of Brega included the Hill of Tara, the site...
, together with the King of Leinster, sacked Dublin. The account of the sack in the Chronicon Scotorum
Chronicon Scotorum
Chronicon Scotorum is a medieval Irish chronicle.According to Nollaig Ó Muraíle, it is "a collection of annals belonging to the 'Clonmacnoise group', covering the period from prehistoric times to 1150 but with some gaps, closely related to the 'Annals of Tigernach'...
states that "four hundred foreigners fell in the taking of the fortress, and they burned it and brought away its jewels and treasures and prisoners". In the same year Amlaíb Cuarán and Blácaire's brother Ragnall were driven out of York. Amlaíb probably took refuge in the Kingdom of Strathclyde
Kingdom of Strathclyde
Strathclyde , originally Brythonic Ystrad Clud, was one of the early medieval kingdoms of the celtic people called the Britons in the Hen Ogledd, the Brythonic-speaking parts of what is now southern Scotland and northern England. The kingdom developed during the post-Roman period...
, but was driven out and returned to Dublin in 945. Ragnall was killed attempting to retake York. Blácaire's position following the sack of Dublin appears to have been weak as he was expelled from the kingship and replaced by Amlaíb Cúarán.
Amlaíb and his ally Congalach of Knowth were defeated, with heavy loss among the Dubliners, by Ruaidrí ua Canannáin
Ruaidrí ua Canannáin
Ruaidrí ua Canannáin was king of the Cenél Conaill, and according to some sources, High King of Ireland.The Cenél Conaill, a branch of the northern Uí Néill had been excluded from the alternating succession to the High Kingship which had been largely dominated by the northern Cenél nEógain kings...
at Slane
Slane
Slane is a village in County Meath, in Ireland. The village stands on a steep hillside on the left bank of the River Boyne at the intersection of the N2 and the N51 . In 2006 Slane's population was 1,099, having grown from 823 in 2002. The population of the village and the surrounding rural area...
in 947. This defeat allowed Blácaire to regain control of Dublin. He did not remain in power for long as he was killed in 948, "by cunning" says the Chronicon Scotorum, and a thousand or more Dubliners killed or captured along with him, by Congalach.
He was succeeded as king in Dublin by Amlaíb Cuarán's brother Gofraid
Gofraid mac Sitriuc
Gofraid mac Sitriuc , in Old Norse Guðrøðr Sigtryggsson, was King of Dublin. He was the son of Sihtric ua Ímair and a great-grandson of Ímar, founder of the Uí Ímair kindred which dominated much of the Norse-Gael and Scandinavianised parts of Britain and Ireland in the 10th century.Gofraid became...
.