The Battle of Islandbridge, also called the Battle of Áth Cliath, took place on 14 September 919, between a coalition of native Irish, led by Niall Glúndub, overking of the

Northern Uí Néill The Northern Uí Néill is any of several dynasties in north-western medieval Ireland that claimed descent from a common ancestor, Niall of the Nine Hostages. Other dynasties in central and eastern Ireland who also claimed descent from Niall we ...

and High King of Ireland, and the Dublin-based

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

of the

Uí Ímair The Uí Ímair (; meaning ‘''scions of Ivar’''), also known as the Ivar Dynasty or Ivarids was a royal Norse-Gael dynasty which ruled much of the Irish Sea region, the Kingdom of Dublin, the western coast of Scotland, including the Hebrides ...

, led by Sitric Cáech. It was one in a series of battles initiated by the native Irish to attempt to drive the Vikings of the Uí Ímair from Ireland. The battle was a decisive victory for Sitric Cáech and the Uí Ímair, with Niall Glúndub and five other Irish kings dying in the battle.

Background

The ruling

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

, the

, had been expelled from the city in 902 by a joint force led by Máel Finnia mac Flannacán, overking of

Brega Brega , also known as ''Mersa Brega'' or ''Marsa al-Brega'' ( ar, مرسى البريقة , i.e. "Brega Seaport"), is a complex of several smaller towns, industry installations and education establishments situated in Libya on the Gulf of Sidra, ...

and Cerball mac Muirecáin, overking of

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

. However, this expulsion was temporary and Viking raids continued on Irish settlements. In 914 a large Viking fleet sailed to the previously Viking-controlled city of

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

, and the following year more Vikings settled in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

, though Dublin itself remained outside Uí Ímair control. Downham, p. 31 In 917 two prominent members of the Uí Ímair, Ragnall and Sitric Cáech, grandsons of

Ímar Ímar ( non, Ívarr ; died c. 873), who may be synonymous with Ivar the Boneless, was a Viking leader in Ireland and Scotland in the mid-late ninth century who founded the Uí Ímair dynasty, and whose descendants would go on to dominate the ...

, sailed separate fleets to Ireland, Ragnall landing at Waterford and Sitric Cáech landing at Cenn Fuait in

. Downham, pp. 31, 273–274 Several native Irish kings gathered forces to try to drive off the Vikings once more, including Niall Glúndub, over-king of the Northern Uí Néill and High King of Ireland, and Augaire mac Ailella, over-king of Leinster. The Vikings fought and won a victory against Niall Glúndub and the men of the Uí Néill at the

Battle of Mag Femen The Battle of Mag Femen took place on 22 August 917 between the Vikings of the Uí Ímair, led by Ragnall, a grandson of Ímar, and the Irish of the Northern Uí Néill, led by Niall Glúndub, High King of Ireland. It was one of two battles invo ...

, and then won

another victory Another or variant may refer to: * anOther or Another Magazine, culture and fashion magazine * ''Another'' (novel), a Japanese horror novel ** ''Another'' (film), a Japanese 2012 live-action film based on the novel * Another River, a river in the ...

against Augaire mac Ailella and the men of Leinster at Cenn Fuait. Sitric led his men on a triumphant return to

, re-establishing Viking rule and installing himself as king, while Ragnall returned to England.

Battle

In 919 a number of Irish kings banded together to try to expel the Vikings from Dublin once more. The known kings who took part in this coalition were Niall Glúndub of the

, Áed mac Eochocáin of

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label=Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...

, Máel Mithig mac Flannacain of

, Mael Craibe mac Duibsinig of

Airgíalla Airgíalla (Modern Irish: Oirialla, English: Oriel, Latin: ''Ergallia'') was a medieval Irish over-kingdom and the collective name for the confederation of tribes that formed it. The confederation consisted of nine minor kingdoms, all independe ...

, Conchobar mac Flainn of Mide, and Cellach mac Fogartaig of South Brega.

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' ( ga, Annála Uladh) are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín ...

, s.a. 919; Annals of Clonmacnoise, s.a. 919;

Annals of the Four Masters The ''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland'' ( ga, Annála Ríoghachta Éireann) or the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' (''Annála na gCeithre Máistrí'') are chronicles of medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or mediev ...

, s.a. 919;

Chronicon Scotorum ''Chronicon Scotorum'', also known as ''Chronicum Scotorum'', is a medieval Irish chronicle. Overview According to Nollaig Ó Muraíle, it is "a collection of annals belonging to the ' Clonmacnoise group', covering the period from prehistoric ti ...

, s.a. 919 The historian Clare Downham has suggested that Niall Glundub and the other kings were emboldened by the departure of Ragnall from Ireland to try again to force out the Uí Ímair. Downham, p. 32 The forces of Sitric and Niall met near

Islandbridge Island Bridge (), formerly Sarah or Sarah's Bridge, is a road bridge spanning the River Liffey, in Dublin, Ireland which joins the South Circular Road to Conyngham Road at the Phoenix Park. Island Bridge and the surrounding area (often kno ...

in modern day

County Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...

on the fourteenth of September. The ''Annals of the Four Masters'' describe Niall's words before the battle: The battle was an overwhelming victory for the Vikings; Niall and five of his ally kings died in the battle alongside many other Irish nobles. The six slain kings were Niall Glúndub of the Northern Uí Néill, Áed mac Eochocáin of

, Máel Mithig mac Flannacain of

, Mael Craibe mac Duibsinig of

, Conchobar mac Flainn of Mide, and Cellach mac Fogartaig of South Brega. Other notable casualties include one of Niall Glúndub's kinsmen, a member of the ruling dynasty of the Southern Uí Néill, and Eiremón mac Cennétig, Chief of the

Cenél Maine Tethbae (; also spelled ''Tethba'', often anglicised ''Teffia'') was a confederation of túatha in central Ireland in the Middle Ages. It was divided into two distinct kingdoms, north Tethba, ruled by the Cenél Coirpri, and south Tethba, ruled ...

. Downham, p. 32;

, s.a. 919 The failure of this coalition to drive out the Vikings ensured the hold of the Uí Ímair on Dublin remained strong. Nevertheless, war between the Vikings and the native Irish continued, and the following year there was a battle between the Vikings of Dublin and

Donnchad Donn Donnchad Donn mac Flainn (''Duncan of the Brown Hair, son of Flann'') (died 944) was High King of Ireland and King of Mide. He belonged to Clann Cholmáin, a branch of the southern Uí Néill. Origins Donnchad was the son of High King Flann ...

, the brother of the slain king Conchobar mac Flainn and the new High King of Ireland.

Notes

References

Citations

Primary sources

* * * * * * Accessed via

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music ...

. * Accessed via

Secondary sources

* * * * *

External links

CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts
at

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one ...

. The Corpus of Electronic Texts includes the ''Annals of Ulster'' and ''the Four Masters'', the ''Chronicon Scotorum'' and the ''Book of Leinster'' as well as Genealogies, and various Saints' Lives. Most are translated into English, or translations are in progress. {{DEFAULTSORT:Islandbridge 910s conflicts Battles involving the Vikings Battles involving the Uí Néill History of County Dublin Viking Age in Ireland