Niall Caille mac Áeda
Encyclopedia
Niall mac Áeda called Niall Caille (Niall of the Callan) to distinguish him from his grandson Niall mac Áeda
(died 917), was High King of Ireland
.
Niall belonged to Cenél nEógain
, a northern branch of the Uí Néill
, a kin group whose rulers dominated large parts of Ireland
. He was the son of Áed mac Néill (died 819), called Áed Oirdnide, who had himself been High King. According to the 12th century Banshenchas
(Lore of Women), his mother was Medb, daughter of Indrechtach mac Muiredaig
of the Uí Briúin
of Connacht
.
The High Kingship of Ireland was in practice shared between Cenél nEógain of the north and the southern Clann Cholmáin
branch of the Uí Néill, so that when Niall's father died, he was not succeeded by his son, or by a cousin, but by Conchobar mac Donnchada
of Clann Cholmáin, whose father Donnchad Midi had been High King before Áed. Nor did Niall immediately succeed to the leadership of Cenél nEógain on his father's death. His second cousin Murchad mac Máele Dúin was chosen to be King of Ailech and chief of Cenél nEógain. It was not until 823, when the Annals of Ulster
record that Murchad was deposed, that Niall became king of Ailech.
led to war. The late Annals of the Four Masters
provide a long account of the events. According to this, Cummascach mac Cathail of the Uí Cremthainn, king of the Airgíalla
, expelled Niall's confessor
Éogan Mainistrech from Armagh, installing his own half-brother, Artrí mac Conchobair, who may have been the son of High King Conchobar mac Donnchada, as abbot of Armagh. The Annals of Ulster describe Artrí as bishop of Armagh in 825 when he imposed the Law of Patrick on Connacht
together with Feidlimid mac Crimthainn, the King of Munster, suggesting that he was both acting abbot and as such the spiritual heir of Saint Patrick
.
Whatever the exact cause of the conflict, Niall raised an army among the Cenél nEógain and Cenél Conaill
and marched on Armagh. He was faced by Cummascach and the Airgíalla, who had been joined by Muiredach mac Eochada
, the king of Ulster, and his army. According to the Annals of the Four Masters, the battle at Leth Cam, near modern Kilmore, County Armagh
, lasted three days. It was a decisive victory for Niall and northern Uí Néill. Cummascach and his brother Congalach were killed, the Annals of Ulster adding that "many other kings of the Airgialla" also died there. The defeat broke the power of the Airgíalla who were thereafter subject to the northern Uí Néill kings. Artrí was deposed from the abbacy of Armagh and Niall may have installed Éogan Mainistrech there as he is called abbot of Armagh by the Annals of the Ulster in the notice of his death in 834.
s who had raided Derry
. This was followed in 835 by an expedition to Leinster
. The Annals of Ulster say "Niall led an army to Laigin and he set up a king over the Laigin". His chosen candidate as king of Leinster was Bran mac Fáeláin
of the Uí Dúnlainge
. The same year he raided the southern Uí Néill and ravaged the country as far south as modern County Offaly
.
The following year, 836, Niall came into conflict with the King of Munster, Feidlimid mac Crimthainn. Feidlimid, who was a churchman as well as a king, abbot of Clonfert and supporter of the austere Céli Dé reformers, attacked Kildare
and captured Forindán, the abbot of Armagh. Although this may have been a challenge to Niall, Benjamin Hudson
notes that Forindán had replaced Diarmait ua Tigernáin the year before, and that it is not known which of the two rivals Niall supported. In 838 Niall and Feidlimid held a rígdal, a royal conference, either at Cloncurry or at Clonfert. Southern sources such as the Annals of Innisfallen say that Niall acknowledged Feidlimid as High King while northern sources such as the Annals of Ulster simply report the meeting without any further details.
Whatever agreements were made at the rígdal, they did not end the conflict between Feidlimid and Niall. In 840 Feidlimid led an army to the Hill of Tara
, where High Kings were inaugurated, and camped there, while Niall again raided into Offaly to undermine support for Feidlimid there. The two did not meet in battle until 841, at Mag nÓchtair, near Cloncurry, where Niall was the victor. A poem in the Annals of Ulster reads: "The crozier of devout Feidlimid/ Was abandoned in the blackthorns;/ Niall, mighty in combat, took it/ By right of victory in battle with swords." Although Feidlimid ruled for five more years, finally dying in 847, perhaps of disease, he never again campaigned in the north.
While Niall was active in opposing Viking raids in his own lands in the north, he appears not to have campaigned against Viking forces elsewhere. During his reign, the focus of Viking activity moved to the east coast and midlands of Ireland, with permanent settlements established at Lough Neagh
and near Dublin. Niall defeated Vikings at Mag nÍtha, in modern County Donegal
, in 845. The following year he drowned in the Callan River
close to Armagh, from which event his epithet
derives. He was buried at Armagh. Niall was followed as High King by Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid of Clann Cholmáin.
, and several other sons.
Áed mac Néill
= Medb ingen Indrechtach mac Muiredaig
|
|
Niall Caille, High King of Ireland, died 846 = Gormflaith ingen Donncadha, died 861.
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_____________|_____________
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Áed Findliath unnamed daughter
Niall Glúndub
Niall Glúndub mac Áedo was a 10th century Irish king of the Cenél nEógain and High King of Ireland. While many Irish kin groups were members of the Uí Néill, tracing their descent from Niall of the Nine Hostages , the O'Neill dynasty took their name from Niall Glúndub rather than the earlier Niall...
(died 917), was High King of Ireland
High King of Ireland
The High Kings of Ireland were sometimes historical and sometimes legendary figures who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over the whole of Ireland. Medieval and early modern Irish literature portrays an almost unbroken sequence of High Kings, ruling from Tara over a hierarchy of...
.
Background
Cenél nEógain
Cenél nEóġain is the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Eógan mac Néill , son of Niall Noígiallach who founded the kingdom of Tír Eoghain in the 5th century...
, a northern branch of the Uí Néill
Uí Néill
The Uí Néill are Irish and Scottish dynasties who claim descent from Niall Noigiallach , an historical King of Tara who died about 405....
, a kin group whose rulers dominated large parts of 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...
. He was the son of Áed mac Néill (died 819), called Áed Oirdnide, who had himself been High King. According to the 12th century Banshenchas
Banshenchas
An Banshenchas is a medieval text which collects brief descriptions of prominent women in Irish legend into a poetic narrative....
(Lore of Women), his mother was Medb, daughter of Indrechtach mac Muiredaig
Indrechtach mac Muiredaig
Indrechtach mac Muiredaig Muillethan was a King of Connacht from the Uí Briúin branch of the Connachta. He was the son of Muiredach Muillethan mac Fergusso , a previous king. He was of the Síl Muiredaig sept of the Uí Briúin....
of the Uí Briúin
Uí Briúin
The Uí Briúin were an Irish kin-group. Their eponymous apical ancestor was Brion, son of Eochaid Mugmedon and Mongfind, and an elder half brother of Niall of the Nine Hostages. They formed part of the Connachta, along with the Uí Fiachrach and Uí Ailello, putative descendants of Eochaid Mugmedon's...
of Connacht
Connacht
Connacht , formerly anglicised as Connaught, is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the west of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for...
.
The High Kingship of Ireland was in practice shared between Cenél nEógain of the north and the southern Clann Cholmáin
Clann Cholmáin
Clann Cholmáin is the name of the dynasty descended from Colmán Mór , son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Part of the Southern Uí Néill — they were the kings of Mide — they traced their descent to Niall Noígiallach and his son Conall Cremthainne.Related dynasties descended through Conall...
branch of the Uí Néill, so that when Niall's father died, he was not succeeded by his son, or by a cousin, but by Conchobar mac Donnchada
Conchobar mac Donnchada
Conchobar mac Donnchada was High-King of Ireland with opposition between 819 and 833. Conchobar was the son of Donnchad Midi, high-king of Ireland ; his mother was Fuirseach, a noblewoman of the Dál nAraidi. Conchobar married Land, daughter of the former High-King Áed Oirdnide...
of Clann Cholmáin, whose father Donnchad Midi had been High King before Áed. Nor did Niall immediately succeed to the leadership of Cenél nEógain on his father's death. His second cousin Murchad mac Máele Dúin was chosen to be King of Ailech and chief of Cenél nEógain. It was not until 823, when the Annals of Ulster
Annals of Ulster
The Annals of Ulster are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years between AD 431 to AD 1540. The entries up to AD 1489 were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín, under his patron Cathal Óg Mac Maghnusa on the island of Belle Isle on Lough Erne in the...
record that Murchad was deposed, that Niall became king of Ailech.
King of Ailech
In 827 a conflict within the important church at ArmaghArmagh
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...
led to war. The late Annals of the Four Masters
Annals of the Four Masters
The Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland or the Annals of the Four Masters are a chronicle of medieval Irish history...
provide a long account of the events. According to this, Cummascach mac Cathail of the Uí Cremthainn, king of the Airgíalla
Airgíalla
Airgíalla or Airgialla was the name of an Irish federation and Irish kingdom which first formed around the 7th century...
, expelled Niall's confessor
Confessor
-Confessor of the Faith:Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith, but not to the point of death. The term is still used in this way in the East. In Latin Christianity it has come to signify any saint, as well as those who have been declared...
Éogan Mainistrech from Armagh, installing his own half-brother, Artrí mac Conchobair, who may have been the son of High King Conchobar mac Donnchada, as abbot of Armagh. The Annals of Ulster describe Artrí as bishop of Armagh in 825 when he imposed the Law of Patrick on Connacht
Connacht
Connacht , formerly anglicised as Connaught, is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the west of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for...
together with Feidlimid mac Crimthainn, the King of Munster, suggesting that he was both acting abbot and as such the spiritual heir of Saint Patrick
Saint Patrick
Saint Patrick was a Romano-Briton and Christian missionary, who is the most generally recognized patron saint of Ireland or the Apostle of Ireland, although Brigid of Kildare and Colmcille are also formally patron saints....
.
Whatever the exact cause of the conflict, Niall raised an army among the Cenél nEógain and Cenél Conaill
Cenél Conaill
The Cenél Conaill is the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Conall Gulban, son of Niall Noígiallach defined by oral and recorded history. They were also known in Scotland as the Kindred of Saint Columba....
and marched on Armagh. He was faced by Cummascach and the Airgíalla, who had been joined by Muiredach mac Eochada
Muiredach mac Eochada
Muiredach mac Eochada was a Dal Fiatach king of Ulaid, which is now Ulster, Ireland. He was the son of Eochaid mac Fiachnai , a previous king. He ruled from 825-839....
, the king of Ulster, and his army. According to the Annals of the Four Masters, the battle at Leth Cam, near modern Kilmore, County Armagh
Kilmore, County Armagh
Kilmore or Killmore is a small village and townland in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It lies 2.5 miles north of Richhill and within the Armagh City and District Council area. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 111 people....
, lasted three days. It was a decisive victory for Niall and northern Uí Néill. Cummascach and his brother Congalach were killed, the Annals of Ulster adding that "many other kings of the Airgialla" also died there. The defeat broke the power of the Airgíalla who were thereafter subject to the northern Uí Néill kings. Artrí was deposed from the abbacy of Armagh and Niall may have installed Éogan Mainistrech there as he is called abbot of Armagh by the Annals of the Ulster in the notice of his death in 834.
King of Tara
After the death of Conchobar mac Donnchada in 833, Niall became High King. His reign began auspiciously with a victory over VikingViking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
s who had raided Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
. This was followed in 835 by an expedition to Leinster
Leinster
Leinster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the east of Ireland. It comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Mide, Osraige and Leinster. Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the historic fifths of Leinster and Mide gradually merged, mainly due to the impact of the Pale, which straddled...
. The Annals of Ulster say "Niall led an army to Laigin and he set up a king over the Laigin". His chosen candidate as king of Leinster was Bran mac Fáeláin
Bran mac Fáeláin
Bran mac Fáeláin was a King of Leinster of the Uí Dúnchada sept of the Uí Dúnlainge branch of the Laigin. This sept had their royal seat at Líamhain . He was the nephew of Fínsnechta Cethardec mac Cellaig and grandson of Cellach mac Dúnchada , previous kings. His father Fáelán had been abbot of...
of the Uí Dúnlainge
Uí Dúnlainge
The Uí Dúnlainge, from the Old Irish "grandsons of Dúnlaing", were an Irish dynasty of Leinster kings who traced their descent from Dúnlaing mac Énda Niada. He was said to be a cousin of Énnae Cennsalach, eponymous ancestor of the rival Uí Chennselaig....
. The same year he raided the southern Uí Néill and ravaged the country as far south as modern County Offaly
County Offaly
County Offaly is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Midlands Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe and was formerly known as King's County until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. Offaly County Council is...
.
The following year, 836, Niall came into conflict with the King of Munster, Feidlimid mac Crimthainn. Feidlimid, who was a churchman as well as a king, abbot of Clonfert and supporter of the austere Céli Dé reformers, attacked Kildare
Kildare
-External links:*******...
and captured Forindán, the abbot of Armagh. Although this may have been a challenge to Niall, Benjamin Hudson
Benjamin Hudson
Benjamin T. Hudson is an American medievalist based at Pennsylvania State University in State College, Pennsylvania. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree at Pennsylvania State University, received his Masters at University College, Dublin, and his Ph. D. at Worcester College, Oxford...
notes that Forindán had replaced Diarmait ua Tigernáin the year before, and that it is not known which of the two rivals Niall supported. In 838 Niall and Feidlimid held a rígdal, a royal conference, either at Cloncurry or at Clonfert. Southern sources such as the Annals of Innisfallen say that Niall acknowledged Feidlimid as High King while northern sources such as the Annals of Ulster simply report the meeting without any further details.
Whatever agreements were made at the rígdal, they did not end the conflict between Feidlimid and Niall. In 840 Feidlimid led an army to the Hill of Tara
Hill of Tara
The Hill of Tara , located near the River Boyne, is an archaeological complex that runs between Navan and Dunshaughlin in County Meath, Leinster, Ireland...
, where High Kings were inaugurated, and camped there, while Niall again raided into Offaly to undermine support for Feidlimid there. The two did not meet in battle until 841, at Mag nÓchtair, near Cloncurry, where Niall was the victor. A poem in the Annals of Ulster reads: "The crozier of devout Feidlimid/ Was abandoned in the blackthorns;/ Niall, mighty in combat, took it/ By right of victory in battle with swords." Although Feidlimid ruled for five more years, finally dying in 847, perhaps of disease, he never again campaigned in the north.
While Niall was active in opposing Viking raids in his own lands in the north, he appears not to have campaigned against Viking forces elsewhere. During his reign, the focus of Viking activity moved to the east coast and midlands of Ireland, with permanent settlements established at Lough Neagh
Lough Neagh
Lough Neagh, sometimes Loch Neagh, is a large freshwater lake in Northern Ireland. Its name comes .-Geography:With an area of , it is the largest lake in the British Isles and ranks among the forty largest lakes of Europe. Located twenty miles to the west of Belfast, it is approximately twenty...
and near Dublin. Niall defeated Vikings at Mag nÍtha, in modern County Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
, in 845. The following year he drowned in the Callan River
Callan River
Callan River is a river in County Armagh, Northern Ireland which joins the River Blackwater 1.6 km upstream from Bond's Bridge. It is navigable by dinghy or canoe for 2 km to Fairlawn Bridge. It flows in a generally northerly direction from Tullnawood lake, past Darkley, passing within a...
close to Armagh, from which event his epithet
Epithet
An epithet or byname is a descriptive term accompanying or occurring in place of a name and having entered common usage. It has various shades of meaning when applied to seemingly real or fictitious people, divinities, objects, and binomial nomenclature. It is also a descriptive title...
derives. He was buried at Armagh. Niall was followed as High King by Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid of Clann Cholmáin.
Family
Niall was married to Gormflaith ingen Donncadha, a sister of Conchobar mac Donnchada. She died in 861 and the notice of her death in the Annals of Ulster calls her "a most charming queen of the Irish". Niall's children included Áed Findliath, known as such to distinguish him from his grandfather, who was later High King and is recorded as Gormflaith's son, as well as a daughter whose name is not recorded who married Conaing mac Flainn of the Síl nÁedo SláineSíl nÁedo Sláine
Síl nÁedo Sláine is the name of the descendants of Áed Sláine , son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Part of the Southern Uí Néill—they were the kings of Brega—they claimed descent from Niall Noígiallach and his son Conall Cremthainne....
, and several other sons.
Family tree
Áed mac Néill
= Medb ingen Indrechtach mac Muiredaig
|
|
Niall Caille, High King of Ireland, died 846 = Gormflaith ingen Donncadha, died 861.
|
_____________|_____________
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| |
Áed Findliath unnamed daughter