Ólchobar mac Cináeda
Encyclopedia
Ólchobar mac Cináeda was King of Munster from 847 until his death. He may be the "king of the Irish" who sent an embassy to Frankish Emperor Charles the Bald
announcing a series of victories over Viking
s in Ireland
in 848.
branch of the Eóganachta
, the kindred which dominated the kingship of Munster
from the 6th to the late 10th centuries, whose lands lay around the Lakes of Killarney
. More recent research however has shown that he was more likely a member of the Eóganacht Áine
branch of the dynasty. This branch, found in the east of modern County Limerick
, was part of the inner circle of Eoganachta which had rotated the kingship of Munster since the 7th century. The Eóganacht Áine provided several abbots of Emly in the 9th century.
Ólchobar is believed to have been abbot of Emly
, the principal church of the Eóganachta, before he was chosen as king. His predecessor, the powerful Feidlimid mac Crimthainn, is the first king of Munster known to have combined clerical office with the kingship. This combination of secular and religious power appears to have been unique to Munster in the ninth and tenth centuries. Several of the kings who held abbacies as well as the kingship, Ólchobar among them but also the better known Cormac mac Cuilennáin
, are thought to have been compromise candidates for the kingship.
, among them the Chronicon Scotorum
, record that early in Ólchobar's reign Emly was attacked by a Viking
force. In 848, a year which saw multiple defeats for the Vikings, Ólchobar joined forces with his eastern neighbour, Lorcán mac Cellaig
, King of Leinster, to defeat a Viking army at Sciath Nechtain, near modern Castledermot
, County Kildare
. Early sources say two hundred Vikings were killed, later ones increase the number of dead, among them one Tomrair, jarl
and deputy of the king of Laithlind. Later in the year the Cashel
branch of the Eóganachta inflicted a defeat on Vikings at Dún Maíle Tuile, near Cashel. Further victories had been won in the west, in modern County Sligo, by the High King
Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid and his ally Tigernach mac Fócartai
.
Late in 848 Ólchobar is said to have set up a camp from which the Vikings at Cork
were blockaded. The result of this siege is nowhere recorded. This is the first mention of the Vikings at Cork. They are not heard of again until 865. It has been suggested that these several campaigns against Vikings were a coordinated effort by the chief Irish kings.
record the arrival of an embassy at the court of the Frankish Emperor Charles the Bald
:
The identity of the "king of the Irish" is not certain. He has been identified with Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid. However, a case has also been made to identify him with Ólchobar. It is suggested that Sedulius Scottus
, a Leinster
man, formed part of the embassy, and that an embassy from the south would be more likely to be organised by the king of Munster rather than the High King. Nothing further is recorded of Ólchobar after 848 until his death in 851. If he was the "king of the Irish", no record of a pilgrimage
to Rome
has survived.
Charles the Bald
Charles the Bald , Holy Roman Emperor and King of West Francia , was the youngest son of the Emperor Louis the Pious by his second wife Judith.-Struggle against his brothers:He was born on 13 June 823 in Frankfurt, when his elder...
announcing a series of victories over Viking
Viking
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 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...
in 848.
Origins
Ólchobar was previously thought to have belonged to the Locha LéinEóganacht Locha Léin
Eóganacht Locha Léin or Ui Caipre Luachra were a branch of the ruling Eoganachta of Munster. Their territory was in Iarmuman or West Munster. Luachair is the old name of a large district on the borders of Co Cork, Kerry and Limerick...
branch of the Eóganachta
Eóganachta
The Eóganachta or Eoghanachta were an Irish dynasty centred around Cashel which dominated southern Ireland from the 6/7th to the 10th centuries, and following that, in a restricted form, the Kingdom of Desmond, and its offshoot Carbery, well into the 16th century...
, the kindred which dominated the kingship of Munster
Munster
Munster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the south 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 administrative and judicial purposes...
from the 6th to the late 10th centuries, whose lands lay around the Lakes of Killarney
Lakes of Killarney
The Lakes of Killarney are a renowned scenic attraction located near Killarney, County Kerry, in Ireland. They consist of three lakes - Lough Leane, Muckross Lake and Upper Lake.Lough Leane is the largest of the three lakes...
. More recent research however has shown that he was more likely a member of the Eóganacht Áine
Eóganacht Áine
Eóganacht Áine or Eóganacht Áine Cliach was a princely house of the Eóganachta, dynasty of Munster during the 5th–12th centuries. They took their name from the Hill of Aine near the present day village of Knockainy, County Limerick. This region of Cliú is centred around the barony of Small...
branch of the dynasty. This branch, found in the east of modern County Limerick
County Limerick
It is thought that humans had established themselves in the Lough Gur area of the county as early as 3000 BC, while megalithic remains found at Duntryleague date back further to 3500 BC...
, was part of the inner circle of Eoganachta which had rotated the kingship of Munster since the 7th century. The Eóganacht Áine provided several abbots of Emly in the 9th century.
Ólchobar is believed to have been abbot of Emly
Emly
Emly or Emlybeg is a village in South Tipperary, Ireland. It is a civil parish in the historical barony of Clanwilliam. It is also an Ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly....
, the principal church of the Eóganachta, before he was chosen as king. His predecessor, the powerful Feidlimid mac Crimthainn, is the first king of Munster known to have combined clerical office with the kingship. This combination of secular and religious power appears to have been unique to Munster in the ninth and tenth centuries. Several of the kings who held abbacies as well as the kingship, Ólchobar among them but also the better known Cormac mac Cuilennáin
Cormac mac Cuilennáin
Cormac mac Cuilennáin was an Irish bishop and was king of Munster from 902 until his death. He was killed fighting in Leinster, probably attempting to restore the fortunes of the kings of Munster by reimposing authority over that province.Cormac was regarded as a saintly figure after his death,...
, are thought to have been compromise candidates for the kingship.
Vikings
Some of the Irish annalsIrish 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...
, among them 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'...
, record that early in Ólchobar's reign Emly was attacked by a Viking
Viking
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...
force. In 848, a year which saw multiple defeats for the Vikings, Ólchobar joined forces with his eastern neighbour, Lorcán mac Cellaig
Lorcán mac Cellaig
Lorcán mac Cellaig was a King of Leinster of the Uí Muiredaig sept of the Uí Dúnlainge branch of the Laigin. This sept had their royal seat at Maistiu in the south of modern County Kildare. He was the son of Cellach mac Brain , a previous king.The succession of kings in Leinster is difficult to...
, King of Leinster, to defeat a Viking army at Sciath Nechtain, near modern Castledermot
Castledermot
Castledermot is an inland village in the south-east of Ireland in County Kildare, about from Dublin, and from the town of Carlow. The N9 road from Dublin to Waterford passes through the village but completion of a bypass is due during 2010.-Demographics:...
, County Kildare
County Kildare
County Kildare is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county...
. Early sources say two hundred Vikings were killed, later ones increase the number of dead, among them one Tomrair, jarl
Earl
An earl is a member of the nobility. The title is Anglo-Saxon, akin to the Scandinavian form jarl, and meant "chieftain", particularly a chieftain set to rule a territory in a king's stead. In Scandinavia, it became obsolete in the Middle Ages and was replaced with duke...
and deputy of the king of Laithlind. Later in the year the Cashel
Cashel, County Tipperary
Cashel is a town in South Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 2936 at the 2006 census. The town gives its name to the ecclesiastical province of Cashel. Additionally, the cathedra of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly was originally in the town prior to the English Reformation....
branch of the Eóganachta inflicted a defeat on Vikings at Dún Maíle Tuile, near Cashel. Further victories had been won in the west, in modern County Sligo, by the High King
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...
Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid and his ally Tigernach mac Fócartai
Tigernach mac Fócartai
Tigernach mac Fócartai , also called Tigernach of Lagore, was King of Lagore.-Background:Tigernach belonged to the Uí Chernaig branch of the once-powerful Síl nÁedo Sláine kindred, part of the southern Uí Néill. His great-great-grandfather Fogartach mac Néill had been High King of Ireland...
.
Late in 848 Ólchobar is said to have set up a camp from which the Vikings at Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
were blockaded. The result of this siege is nowhere recorded. This is the first mention of the Vikings at Cork. They are not heard of again until 865. It has been suggested that these several campaigns against Vikings were a coordinated effort by the chief Irish kings.
King of the Irish?
Following this series of victories over the Vikings, Annales BertinianiAnnales Bertiniani
Annales Bertiniani, or The Annals of St. Bertin, are late Carolingian, Frankish annals that were found in the monastery of St. Bertin, after which they are named. Their account is taken to cover the period 830-82, thus continuing the Royal Frankish Annals , from which, however, it has circulated...
record the arrival of an embassy at the court of the Frankish Emperor Charles the Bald
Charles the Bald
Charles the Bald , Holy Roman Emperor and King of West Francia , was the youngest son of the Emperor Louis the Pious by his second wife Judith.-Struggle against his brothers:He was born on 13 June 823 in Frankfurt, when his elder...
:
The Irish attacked the Vikings and with the help of our Lord Jesus Christ they were victorious and drove them out of their territory. For that reason, the king of the Irish sends ambassadors with gifts to Charles for the sake of peace and friendship and with the request to allow him free passage to Rome.
The identity of the "king of the Irish" is not certain. He has been identified with Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid. However, a case has also been made to identify him with Ólchobar. It is suggested that Sedulius Scottus
Sedulius Scottus
Sedulius Scottus was an Irish teacher, Latin grammarian and Scriptural commentator, who lived in the ninth century.Sedulius is sometimes called Sedulius the Younger, to distinguish him from Coelius Sedulius . The Irish form of the name is Siadhal.Sedulius the Younger flourished from 840 to 860...
, a 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...
man, formed part of the embassy, and that an embassy from the south would be more likely to be organised by the king of Munster rather than the High King. Nothing further is recorded of Ólchobar after 848 until his death in 851. If he was the "king of the Irish", no record of a pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
has survived.