Ascall mac Ragnaill, also Hasculf Rognvaldsson (died 1171), but surnamed Mac Torcaill or Thorgillsson, was the last Norse

Norsemen

Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who spoke what is now called the Old Norse language belonging to the North Germanic branch of Indo-European languages, especially Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Swedish and Danish in their earlier forms.The meaning of Norseman was "people...

 King of Dublin. His fortress is believed to have stood on the modern site of Dublin Castle

Dublin Castle

Dublin Castle off Dame Street, Dublin, Ireland, was until 1922 the fortified seat of British rule in Ireland, and is now a major Irish government complex. Most of it dates from the 18th century, though a castle has stood on the site since the days of King John, the first Lord of Ireland...

. After the 1171 invasion under Strongbow

Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke

Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke , Lord of Leinster, Justiciar of Ireland . Like his father, he was also commonly known as Strongbow...

, Ascall's kingdom was captured by Cambro-Norman

Cambro-Norman

Cambro-Norman is a term used for Norman knights who settled in southern Wales after the Norman conquest of England in 1066. Some historians suggest that the term is to be preferred to Anglo-Norman for the Normans who invaded Ireland after 1170 — many of whom originated in Wales. However, the term...

 mercenaries allied with King Dermot MacMurrough

Dermot MacMurrough

Diarmait Mac Murchada , anglicized as Dermot MacMurrough or Dermod MacMurrough , was a King of Leinster in Ireland. In 1167, he was deprived of his kingdom by the High King of Ireland - Turlough Mór O'Connor...

. He was forced to flee to the Scottish Highlands

Scottish Highlands

The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...

, where he raised an army among his relations there. When he returned and attempted to regain his kingdom by force, he was defeated and killed. The objective Irish annals

Irish annals

A number of Irish annals were compiled up to and shortly after the end of Gaelic Ireland in the 17th century.Annals were originally a means by which monks determined the yearly chronology of feast days...

 state that he was killed in battle.

The unreliable writings of Giraldus Cambrensis

Giraldus Cambrensis

Gerald of Wales , also known as Gerallt Gymro in Welsh or Giraldus Cambrensis in Latin, archdeacon of Brecon, was a medieval clergyman and chronicler of his times...

, however, tell a very different story, likely a fabrication. Allegedly captured on the sands of the harbor while attempting to flee back to his ships, Ascall paid a large ransom in exchange for his release. However, before his release could be finalised, he allegedly told his captors that they had only seen a small fraction of his power and that next season he would return with an even bigger army. The Normans responded by pocketing the ransom and beheading him in the town square.