Conall mac Máele Coba, called Conall Cóel, (died 654) was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
king and is said to have been
High King of Ireland.
Biography
Conall was the son of
Máel Coba mac Áedo and belonged to the
Cenél Conaill
Cenél is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Cenél Conaill, the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Conall Gulban, son of Niall Noígiallach defined by oral and recorded history
* Cenél nEógain (in English, Cenel Eogan) i ...
branch of the northern
Uí Néill
The Uí Néill (Irish pronunciation: ; meaning "descendants of Niall") are Irish dynasties who claim descent from Niall Noígíallach (Niall of the Nine Hostages), a historical King of Tara who died c. 405. They are generally divided into t ...
. According to the
Irish annals derived from the ''
Chronicle of Ireland'', he may have been High King, jointly with his brother
Cellach mac Máele Coba, following the death of his uncle
Domnall mac Áedo in 642. The ''
Annals of Ulster'' for 643 say:
Here there is doubt as to who reigned after Domnall. Some historiographers say that four kings, namely Cellach and Conall Cóel and the two sons of Áed Sláine
Áed mac Diarmato (died 604), called Áed Sláine (Áed of Slane), was the son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Legendary stories exist of Áed's birth. Saint Columba is said to have prophesied his death. His descendants, the Síl nÁedo Sláine—t ...
, namely Diarmait and Blathmac
Saint Blathmac ( la, Blathmacus, Florentius) was a distinguished Irish monk, born in Ireland about 750 AD. He is known as "Blathmac, son of Flann", to distinguish him from the poet and monk Blathmac mac Con Brettan.
He was killed and became a ...
, ruled in shared reigns.
All four putative successors to Domnall had been his allies at the great
Battle of Mag Rath in 637, where
Congal Cáech was defeated and the authority of the Uí Néill re-established, and it is not implausible that all four ruled together. Conall is mentioned as the commander of Domnall's forces at the Battle of Sailtír, a naval battle which defeated the forces of the
Cenél nEógain
Cenél is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Cenél Conaill, the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Conall Gulban, son of Niall Noígiallach defined by oral and recorded history
* Cenél nEógain (in English, Cenel Eogan) i ...
and
Dál Riata
Dál Riata or Dál Riada (also Dalriada) () was a Gaelic kingdom that encompassed the western seaboard of Scotland and north-eastern Ireland, on each side of the North Channel. At its height in the 6th and 7th centuries, it covered what is n ...
on the same day as Mag Rath in 637.
He ruled from 643-654. The king lists have Cellach and Conall reigning before Diarmait and Blathmac. Both Cellach and Conall are omitted from the earliest king list—a late 7th century poem called ''Baile Chuinn''.
Their cousin Óengus mac Domnaill may have attempted to take power in the north. He was killed in a battle at Dún Cremthainn in 650, fighting against Conall and Cellach.
Conall Cóel was killed in 654. A gloss added to the ''
Annals of Ulster'' states that he was killed by Diarmait, and this is repeated in the ''
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 Middle Ages, medieval Irish history. The entries span from the Flood myt ...
''.
[AU 654.1; Mac Niocaill,pg.98]
Notes
References
* ''Annals of Ulster'' a
a
University College Cork* ''Annals of Tigernach'' a
a
University College Cork*
Francis John Byrne, Byrne, Francis John, ''Irish Kings and High-Kings.'' Batsford, London, 1973.
* Charles-Edwards, T.M., ''Early Christian Ireland.'' Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2000.
* Mac Niocaill, Gearoid (1972), ''Ireland before the Vikings'', Dublin: Gill and Macmillan
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Conall Coel
High Kings of Ireland
654 deaths
7th-century Irish monarchs
Year of birth unknown