Gille Coemgáin or Gillecomgan was the King or

Mormaer In early Middle Ages, medieval Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, a mormaer was the Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic name for a regional or provincial ruler, theoretically second only to the Kings of Scots, King of Scots, and the senior of a ''Toísech'' (chi ...

Moray Moray () gd, Moireibh or ') is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Between 1975 ...

, a semi-autonomous kingdom centred on

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

that stretched across the north of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Unlike his two predecessors, he is not called ''King of Scotland'' in his death notice, but merely Mormaer. This has led to some speculation that he was never actually the ruler of Moray, but merely a subordinate of

Mac Bethad mac Findláich Macbeth ( – 15 August 1057) was King of Scots from 1040 until his death. He ruled over the Kingdom of Alba, which covered only a portion of present-day Scotland. Little is known about Macbeth's early life, although he was the son of Findláe ...

. (Hudson p. 136). In 1020, he participated in the killing of his uncle Findláech, the father of

MacBeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

. The

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. 1032) reports that Gille Coemgáin was burned to death, together with 50 of his men. The perpetrators are not mentioned in any sources. From circumstances, two candidates have been proposed to have led the atrocity:

Malcolm II of Scotland Máel Coluim mac Cináeda ( gd, Maol Chaluim mac Choinnich, label=Modern Scottish Gaelic; anglicized Malcolm II; c. 954 – 25 November 1034) was King of Scots from 1005 until his death. He was a son of King Kenneth II; but the name of his moth ...

Mac Bethad Macbeth ( – 15 August 1057) was King of Scots from 1040 until his death. He ruled over the Kingdom of Alba, which covered only a portion of present-day Scotland. Little is known about Macbeth's early life, although he was the son of Findláe ...

, who then became the only ruler of Moray. Both men were Gille Coemgáin's cousin, and both had reason to want him dead. Gille Coemgáin is believed to have killed his cousin Dúngal mac Cináeda, the younger brother of Malcolm II, in 999. This could be a motive, but 33 years is a long time to wait for retaliation. Likewise, Gille Coemgáin participated in the death of Mac Bethad's father, his death at Mac Bethad's hands may also have been an act of retaliation; however, this is not documented. Mac Bethad gained more from Gille Coemgáin's death for not only did he become the solitary ruler of Moray, he also married

Gruoch Gruoch ingen Boite () was a Scottish queen, the daughter of Boite mac Cináeda, son of Cináed II. She is most famous for being the wife and queen of MacBethad mac Findlaích (Macbeth). The dates of her life are uncertain. Life Gruoch is beli ...

, Gille Coemgáin's widow. The marriage may have been either as a conquered enemy widow or a widow of an ally and kinsman, depending on who was responsible for the murder. Both scenarios are entirely credible, knowing archaic medieval customs – nothing exculpatory can be concluded from the marriage, whereas the adoption of the stepson may be a weightier indication. Gille Coemgáin and Gruoch were the parents of

Lulach Lulach mac Gille Coemgáin ( Modern Gaelic: ''Lughlagh mac Gille Chomghain'', known in English simply as Lulach, and nicknamed Tairbith, "the Unfortunate" and Fatuus, "the Simple-minded" or "the Foolish"; before 1033 – 17 March 1058) was King of ...

, a future King of Scotland, fostered by Mac Bethad, whom he succeeded.

In fiction

In the animated series '' Gargoyles'', Gille Coemgáin is referred to as Gillecomgain. As a boy, Gille Coemgáin surprises

Demona Demona (), voiced by Marina Sirtis, is a fictional character and one of the primary antagonists of the Disney animated television series '' Gargoyles''. Demona was once Goliath's mate and was part of their 10th century AD castle's ''Wyvern Cl ...

prowling around one night in his family's barn, and is promptly slashed in the face by the female gargoyle, creating the generational line of "hunters" bent on destroying all gargoyles. As an adult, just as in medieval reality, Gille Coemgáin kills his uncle Findlaech of Moray, here under the orders of

Duncan I Donnchad mac Crinain ( gd, Donnchadh mac Crìonain; anglicised as Duncan I, and nicknamed An t-Ilgarach, "the Diseased" or "the Sick"; c. 1001 – 14 August 1040)Broun, "Duncan I (d. 1040)". was king of Scotland (''Alba'') from 1034 to 1040. H ...

of Scotland. Duncan rewards Gillecomgain by making him High Steward of Moray and marrying him to Gruoch.

Bibliography

* Hudson, Benjamin T., ''Kings of Celtic Scotland'', (Westport, 1994)

References

''For primary sources see also '' External links ''below.'' * Weir, Alison, "Britain's Royal Families: The Complete Genealogy"

External links

Annals of Ulster

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moray, Gille Coemgain of 1032 deaths Gille Coemgain People from Moray 11th-century Scottish monarchs 10th-century Scottish people Year of birth unknown Mormaers of Moray 11th-century mormaers