James Barry's The Baptism of King Cashel by St Patrick

Eóganacht Chaisil were a branch of the

Eóganachta The Eóganachta or Eoghanachta () were an Irish dynasty centred on Cashel which dominated southern Ireland (namely the Kingdom of Munster) from the 6/7th to the 10th centuries, and following that, in a restricted form, the Kingdom of Desmond, an ...

, the ruling dynasty of

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...

between the 5th and 10th centuries. They took their name from Cashel (County Tipperary) which was the capital of the early Catholic kingdom of Munster. They were descended from

Óengus mac Nad Froích Óengus mac Nad Froích (430-489) was an Eoganachta and the first Christian King of Munster. He was the son of Nad Froich mac Cuirc by Faochan, a British lady (called daughter of the King of Britain). In Geoffrey Keating's ''History of Ireland'' ...

(died 489), the first Christian

King of Munster The kings of Munster ( ga, Rí Mumhan), ruled from the establishment of Munster during the Irish Iron Age, until the High Middle Ages. According to Gaelic traditional history, laid out in works such as the '' Book of Invasions'', the earliest ...

, through his son

Feidlimid mac Óengusa Feidlimid mac Óengusa (455-500), or Feidlimid Dub, was an Eoganachta King of Munster in the early 6th century. He was the son of Óengus mac Nad Froích, the first Christian king of Munster. The chronology of the 6th-century kings of Munster in ...

. In the seventh century, they split into two main clans. Cenél Fíngin descended from Fíngen mac Áedo Duib (d. 618) and became the

O'Sullivan O'Sullivan ( ga, Ó Súilleabháin, Súileabhánach) is an Irish Gaelic clan based most prominently in what is today County Cork and County Kerry. The surname is associated with the southwestern part of Ireland, and was originally found in County ...

s and MacGillycuddys. The McGillycuddy are a sept of the O'Sullivan's. A descendant of Fíngen was

Feidlimid mac Cremthanin Fedelmid mac Crimthainn was the King of Munster between 820 and 846. He was numbered as a member of the Céli Dé, an abbot of Cork Abbey and Clonfert Abbey, and possibly a bishop. After his death, he was later considered a saint in some mart ...

(d. 847). Clann Faílbe descended from

Faílbe Flann mac Áedo Duib Faílbe Flann mac Áedo Duib (died 639) was a King of Munster from the Eóganacht Chaisil branch of the Eoganachta. He succeeded Cathal mac Áedo Flaind Chathrach of the Glendamnach branch in 628. He was the younger brother of a previous king ...

(d. 639) and became the

MacCarthy dynasty MacCarthy ( ga, Mac Cárthaigh), also spelled Macarthy, McCarthy or McCarty, is an Irish clan originating from Munster, an area they ruled during the Middle Ages. It was divided into several great branches; the MacCarthy Reagh, MacCarthy of Musk ...

, rulers of the

Kingdom of Desmond The Kingdom of Desmond () was a historic kingdom in southwestern Ireland. It was founded in 1118 by Tadhg Mac Cárthaigh, King of Munster when the Treaty of Glanmire formally divided the Kingdom of Munster into Desmond and Thomond (, "North ...

following their displacement by the Normans. The

O'Callaghan O'Callaghan () or simply Callaghan without the prefix (anglicized from '' Ó Ceallacháin'') is an Irish surname. Origin and meaning Munster The surname means descendant of Ceallachán who was the Eóganachta King of Munster from AD 935 until ...

s belong to the same line as the MacCarthys, while the MacAuliffes are a sept of the MacCarthys. The Eóganacht Chaisil were considered part of the inner circle of Eoganachta dynasties which included the

Eóganacht Glendamnach Eóganacht Glendamnach were a branch of the Eóganachta, the ruling dynasty of Munster during the 5th-10th centuries. They took their name from Glendamnach (Glanworth, County Cork). They were descended from Óengus mac Nad Froích (died 489), the ...

and

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 Áine ( ga, Cnoc Áine) near the present day village of Knockainy, C ...

branches. These three branches rotated the kingship of Munster in the 7th and much of the 8th centuries. The Chaisil branch provided most of the kings in the 9th and 10th centuries in Munster. Kings of Cashel and Munster from the Eóganacht Chaisil were:

Kings of Eóganacht Chaisil

* Fíngen mac Áedo Duib, d. 618 *

, d. 639 *

Máenach mac Fíngin Máenach mac Fíngin (died 661) was a King of Munster from the Eóganacht Chaisil branch of the Eoganachta. He was the son of Fíngen mac Áedo Duib (died 618), a previous king. His mother was Mór Muman (died 636), daughter of Áed Bennán mac ...

, d. 661 *

Colgú mac Faílbe Flaind Colgú mac Faílbe Flaind (died 678) was a King of Munster from the Eóganacht Chaisil branch of the Eoganachta. He was the son of Faílbe Flann mac Áedo Duib (d. 639),Francis J.Byrne, ''Irish Kings and High-Kings'', Table 12 a previous king. H ...

, d. 678 * Cormac mac Ailello, d. 712 * Tnúthgal mac Donngaile, d. 820 *

, d.

847 __NOTOC__ Year 847 ( DCCCXLVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Danish Vikings land in the Breton March (western part of Gaul). Duke Nominoe ...

Áilgenán mac Donngaile Áilgenán mac Donngaile (died 853) was a King of Munster from the Eóganacht Chaisil Eóganacht Chaisil were a branch of the Eóganachta, the ruling dynasty of Munster between the 5th and 10th centuries. They took their name from Cashel (Count ...

, d. 853 *

Máel Gualae Máel mac Donngaile (died 859), known as Máel Gualae, was a King of Munster from the Eóganacht Chaisil branch of the Eoganachta, the ruling dynasty of Munster. He was of the Clann Faílbe sept of this branch and a grandson of Tnúthgal mac Donn ...

, d. 859 *

Cormac mac Cuilennáin Cormac mac Cuilennáin (died 13 September 908) was an Irish bishop and the king of Munster from 902 until his death at the Battle of Bellaghmoon. He was killed in Leinster. Cormac was regarded as a saintly figure after his death, and his shrine ...

, d.

908 __NOTOC__ Year 908 ( CMVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * May 15 – The three-year-old Constantine VII, the son of Emperor L ...

* Cellachán Caisil, d. 954 *

Donnchad mac Cellacháin Donnchad mac Cellacháin ( fl. 961–963) was a son of Cellachan of Cashel who is alleged to have briefly ruled as King of Cashel and Munster from 961 until 963, when he was murdered by his brother. Although in some popular accounts he is succe ...

, d. 963

Annalistic references

See

Annals of Inisfallen Annals ( la, annāles, from , "year") are a concise historical record in which events are arranged chronologically, year by year, although the term is also used loosely for any historical record. Scope The nature of the distinction between ann ...

(AI) * ''AI954.2 Repose of Dub Inse, learned bishop of Ireland, and of Cellachán, king of Caisel, and of Éladach the learned, abbot of Ros Ailithir, and of Uarach, bishop of Imlech Ibuir, and of Célechair, abbot of Cluain Moccu Nóis and Cluain Iraird, and of Cormac Ua Maíl Shluaig, learned sage of Mumu, and of Lugaid Ua Maíl Shempail, abbot of Domnach Pátraic, and of Cenn Faelad son of Suibne, anchorite of Cluain Ferta Brénainn.''

References

* Byrne, Francis John (2001), Irish Kings and High-Kings, Dublin: Four Courts Press, * Charles-Edwards, T. M. (2000), ''Early Christian Ireland'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
Ireland's History in Maps
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eoganacht Chaisil Kings of Munster MacCarthy dynasty Eóganachta