Dumnagual I of Alt Clut
Encyclopedia
Dumnagual I, also known as Dumnagual Hen ("the Old"; ), was a ruler of the Brythonic
kingdom of Alt Clut
(modern Dumbarton Rock), later known as Strathclyde, probably sometime in the early 6th century. His biography is vague, but he was regarded as an important ancestor figure for several kingly lines in the Hen Ogledd
or "Old North" of Britain. As an ancestor figure, he compares to Coel Hen
, another obscure figure credited with founding a number of northern dynasties.
According to the Harleian genealogies
, Dumnagual was the son of a Cinuit
, the son of Ceretic Guletic, probably his predecessors as king. The Harleian genealogies name three of his sons, each of whom formed a kingly line. These are Clinoch
, Dumnagual's successor as king of Alt Clut; Guipno (Gwyddno), who fathered the later king Neithon
; and Cynfelyn, a king of Din Eidyn or Edinburgh
. The Bonedd Gwŷr y Gogledd
, a later genealogy of northern kings, gives a modified version of Dumnagual's family tree. Here, he is the son of Idnyued and the grandson of Maxen Wledig
, better known as the Roman usurper
Magnus Maximus. The Bonedd follows the Harleian in making Dumnagual the great-grandfather of Rhydderch Hael
, a later king of Alt Clut, but his other descendants are altered significantly. A Gwyddno is included, but he listed as Dumnagual's great-grandson rather than son, and he is specifically identified as Gwyddno Garanhir
of the Taliesin
legend. A highly confused track makes Dumnagual the ancestor to the family of Áedán mac Gabráin
, a 6th-century ruler of the Gaelic
kingdom of Dál Riata
.
Britons (historical)
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
kingdom of Alt Clut
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...
(modern Dumbarton Rock), later known as Strathclyde, probably sometime in the early 6th century. His biography is vague, but he was regarded as an important ancestor figure for several kingly lines in the Hen Ogledd
Hen Ogledd
Yr Hen Ogledd is a Welsh term used by scholars to refer to those parts of what is now northern England and southern Scotland in the years between 500 and the Viking invasions of c. 800, with particular interest in the Brythonic-speaking peoples who lived there.The term is derived from heroic...
or "Old North" of Britain. As an ancestor figure, he compares to Coel Hen
King Cole
King Cole is a figure of British folklore.King Cole may also refer to:*"Old King Cole", nursery rhyme* Old King Cole , a 1933 Disney cartoon about Old King Cole*King Cole , Major League Baseball pitcher...
, another obscure figure credited with founding a number of northern dynasties.
According to the Harleian genealogies
Harleian genealogies
The Harleian genealogies are a collection of Old Welsh genealogies preserved in British Library, Harleian MS 3859. Part of the Harleian Collection, the manuscript, which also contains the Annales Cambriae and a version of the Historia Brittonum, has been dated to c. 1100, although a date of c.1200...
, Dumnagual was the son of a Cinuit
Cinuit of Alt Clut
Cinuit may have been an early king of Alt Clut, later known as Strathclyde, a Brythonic kingdom in the Hen Ogledd or "Old North" of Britain. The Harleian genealogies indicate that he was the son of Ceretic Guletic, who may be identified with the warlord Ceredig rebuked by Saint Patrick in one of...
, the son of Ceretic Guletic, probably his predecessors as king. The Harleian genealogies name three of his sons, each of whom formed a kingly line. These are Clinoch
Clinoch of Alt Clut
Clinoch is thought to have been a ruler of Alt Clut , the Brythonic kingdom later known as Strathclyde, some time in the 6th century. The Harleian genealogies name Clinoch as the son of Dumnagual Hen, his probable predecessor as King of Alt Clut, and the father of Tutagual, his probable successor...
, Dumnagual's successor as king of Alt Clut; Guipno (Gwyddno), who fathered the later king Neithon
Neithon of Alt Clut
Neithon was a 7th-century ruler of Alt Clut, the Brittonic kingdom later known as Strathclyde . According to the Harleian genealogies, he was the son of Guipno map Dumnagual Hen. Alfred Smyth suggests he is the same man as King Nechtan the Great of the Picts, and perhaps the Nechtan son of Canu...
; and Cynfelyn, a king of Din Eidyn or Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
. The Bonedd Gwŷr y Gogledd
Bonedd Gwŷr y Gogledd
Bonedd Gwŷr y Gogledd is a brief Middle Welsh tract which claims to give the pedigrees of twenty 6th-century rulers of the Hen Ogledd , the Brythonic-speaking parts of southern Scotland and northern England. It is attested in a number of manuscripts, the earliest being NLW, Peniarth MS 45, which...
, a later genealogy of northern kings, gives a modified version of Dumnagual's family tree. Here, he is the son of Idnyued and the grandson of Maxen Wledig
Magnus Maximus
Magnus Maximus , also known as Maximianus and Macsen Wledig in Welsh, was Western Roman Emperor from 383 to 388. As commander of Britain, he usurped the throne against Emperor Gratian in 383...
, better known as the Roman usurper
Roman usurper
Usurpers are individuals or groups of individuals who obtain and maintain the power or rights of another by force and without legal authority. Usurpation was endemic during roman imperial era, especially from the crisis of the third century onwards, when political instability became the rule.The...
Magnus Maximus. The Bonedd follows the Harleian in making Dumnagual the great-grandfather of Rhydderch Hael
Riderch I of Alt Clut
Riderch I , commonly known as Riderch or Rhydderch Hael , was a ruler of Alt Clut and the greater region later known as Strathclyde, a Brittonic kingdom that existed on the valley of the River Clyde in Scotland during the British Sub-Roman period...
, a later king of Alt Clut, but his other descendants are altered significantly. A Gwyddno is included, but he listed as Dumnagual's great-grandson rather than son, and he is specifically identified as Gwyddno Garanhir
Gwyddno Garanhir
Gwyddno Garanhir was the supposed ruler of a sunken land off the coast of Wales, known as Cantre'r Gwaelod. He was the father of Elffin ap Gwyddno, the foster-father of the famous Welsh poet, Taliesin, in the legendary account given in the late medieval Chwedl Taliesin .-Legend:The basket of...
of the Taliesin
Taliesin
Taliesin was an early British poet of the post-Roman period whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the Book of Taliesin...
legend. A highly confused track makes Dumnagual the ancestor to the family of Áedán mac Gabráin
Áedán mac Gabráin
Áedán mac Gabráin was a king of Dál Riata from circa 574 until his death, perhaps on 17 April 609. The kingdom of Dál Riata was situated in modern Argyll and Bute, Scotland, and parts of County Antrim, Ireland...
, a 6th-century ruler of the Gaelic
Gaels
The Gaels or Goidels are speakers of one of the Goidelic Celtic languages: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx. Goidelic speech originated in Ireland and subsequently spread to western and northern Scotland and the Isle of Man....
kingdom of Dál Riata
Dál Riata
Dál Riata was a Gaelic overkingdom on the western coast of Scotland with some territory on the northeast coast of Ireland...
.