Niall Glúndub mac Áeda (

Modern Irish Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was the ...

: ''Niall Glúndubh mac Aodha'', "Niall Black-Knee, son of Áed"; died 14 September 919) was a 10th-century Irish king 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) is ...

and

High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ga, Ardrí na hÉireann ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and later sometimes assigned ana ...

. Many Irish kin groups were members of the

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 the ...

and traced their descent from

Niall of the Nine Hostages Niall ''Noígíallach'' (; Old Irish "having nine hostages"), or Niall of the Nine Hostages, was a legendary, semi-historical Irish king who was the ancestor of the Uí Néill dynasties that dominated Ireland from the 6th to the 10th centuries. ...

(Niall Noígiallach). His mother was Máel Muire, daughter of

Kenneth MacAlpin Kenneth MacAlpin ( mga, Cináed mac Ailpin, label=Medieval Gaelic, gd, Coinneach mac Ailpein, label=Modern Scottish Gaelic; 810 – 13 February 858) or Kenneth I was King of Dál Riada (841–850), King of the Picts (843–858), and the King ...

, King of Scots.

Biography

Son of

Áed Findliath Áed mac Néill (died 879), called Áed Findliath ("fair-grey Áed"; Modern Irish: ''Aodh Fionnadhliath'') to distinguish him from his paternal grandfather Áed Oirdnide, was king of Ailech and High King of Ireland. He was also called Áed Olach ...

, Niall is first recorded succeeding his brother

Domnall mac Áeda Domnall mac Áeda (died 915), also known as Domnall Dabaill, was a King of Ailech. He was a son of Áed Findliath mac Niall, High King of Ireland. Domnall was a half-brother of Niall Glúndub mac Áeda, a man with whom he shared the kingship of ...

King of Ailech The Kings of Ailech were the over-kings of the Medieval Ireland, medieval Irish Provinces of Ireland, province of Ailech in north-western Ireland. It encompassed the territories of the Cenél nEógain and Cenél Conaill. After the battle of Cloí ...

upon his death in 911. Extending his control to neighboring kingdoms, Niall defeated the Kings of

Dál nAraidi Dál nAraidi (; "Araide's part") or Dál Araide, sometimes Latinised as Dalaradia or Anglicised as Dalaray,Boyd, Hugh AlexanderIrish Dalriada ''The Glynns: Journal of The Glens of Antrim Historical Society''. Volume 76 (1978). was a Cruthin kin ...

and

Ulaid Ulaid (Old Irish, ) or Ulaidh (Modern Irish, ) was a Gaelic over-kingdom in north-eastern Ireland during the Middle Ages made up of a confederation of dynastic groups. Alternative names include Ulidia, which is the Latin form of Ulaid, and in ...

at the Battles of Glarryford (in present-day

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

) and

Ballymena Ballymena ( ; from ga, an Baile Meánach , meaning 'the middle townland') is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is part of the Borough of Mid and East Antrim. The town is built on land given to the Adair family by King Charles I i ...

before his defeat by high-king

Flann Sinna mac Maíl Sechnaill Flann Sinna ( lit. ''Flann of the Shannon''; Irish: ''Flann na Sionainne''; 84725 May 916), also known as Flann mac Máel Sechnaill, was the son of Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid of Clann Cholmáin, a branch of the Southern Uí Néill. He was ...

of the

Clann Cholmáin Clann Cholmáin is the dynasty descended from Colmán Már mac Diarmato, son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Part of the Southern Uí Néill — they were the kings of Mide (Meath) — they traced their descent to Niall Noígiallach and his s ...

Uí Néill at the Battle of

Crossakiel Crossakiel or Crossakeel ( Irish: ''Crosa Caoil'', meaning "the crosses of Caol") is a village in County Meath, Ireland. It is situated in the north-west of the county, at the junction of the R154 and the L2801, approximately 13km south of Oldc ...

(in present-day

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the sou ...

). Following Flann's death in 916, Niall succeeded him as High King of Ireland. It was during his reign in which he would reestablish the

Óenach An aonach or óenach was an ancient Irish public national assembly called upon the death of a king, queen, or notable sage or warrior as part of ancestor worship practices. As well as the entertainment, the óenach was an occasion on which kings a ...

Tailteann, a traditional gathering of Irish clans. He was married to

Gormflaith ingen Flann Sinna Gormflaith ingen Flann Sinna (c. 870–948) was an Irish Queen of Tara, Munster, and Leinster. Family background Gormflaith was the daughter of Flann Sinna, High King of Ireland from 879 to 916. Her mother was Gormlaith ingen Flann mac Cona ...

. With the support of the clans of

Leth Cuinn Leath Cuinn (Conn's Half) and Leath Moga (Mugh's half) are legendary ancient divisions of Ireland. Leath Cuinn was the island north of the Esker Riada (east-west drumlin belt from Dublin to Galway Bay). Conn Cétchathach, for whom this division i ...

(Northern half of Ireland), the Uí Néill eventually acknowledged his claim to the throne. With a surge of

Northmen The Norsemen (or Norse people) were a North Germanic ethnolinguistic group of the Early Middle Ages, during which they spoke the Old Norse language. The language belongs to the North Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages and is the pre ...

forces 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 ...

launched an invasion in the south of Ireland in the years following 914 which greatly weakened the Eoghanacht of Munster and led to the establishment of a longfort at Waterford. Intent on opposing this, and coming to the assistance of Munster, Niall's forces moved south and fought a large battle against a group of Northmen in the summer of 917, ending inconclusively but with the death of many nobles and tributary kings in his following. The army of the King of Leinster which had been called in to reinforce him however was utterly devastated near St Mullins, leaving the province in a tributary position to the Northmen. Despite his campaigns against the Northmen they continued to settle in large numbers, re-establishing their stronghold in Dublin (after a 15-year gap) and various ports on the eastern coast putting pressure on the Midland kingdom of Midhe. In an effort to bring the war to the Northmen, Niall advanced into

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 ...

, supported by the Uí Néill clans, the

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 ...

and the

. However, his forces were decimated by the Northmen under

Sihtric Cáech Sihtric or Sitric is an anglo-Saxon personal name. It is cognate with the Old Norse Sigtrygg. People called Sihtric or Sitric, include: * Sitric Cáech (died 927), ruler of Dublin and then Viking Northumbria in the early 10th century * Sitric II ...

as Niall was killed, along with twelve other chieftains, at the

Battle of Islandbridge 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 and High King of Ireland, and the Dublin-based V ...

on 14 September 919. Another account in the ''

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...

'' has

slaying his brother Niall in 921. Glúndub was succeeded as High King by

Donnchad Donn mac Flainn 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 Si ...

, son of Flann Sinna, and as

by his son

Muirchertach mac Néill Muirchertach mac Néill (died 26 February 943), called Muirchertach of the Leather Cloaks ( sga, Muirchertach na Cochall Craicinn), was a King of Ailech. Family Muirchertach belonged to the Cenél nEógain sept of the northern Uí Néill. He was ...

, "the Hector of the Western World".

Family tree

Niall Caille = Gormflaith ingen Donncadha , , ____________________________________________________________________________ , , , , Áed Findliath = Gormlaith Rapach =

Land ingen Dúngaile Land ingen Dúngaile (died 890 AD) (sometimes spelled ''Lann'' or ''Flann''; her patronymic sometimes ''Dúnlainge'') was a Dál Birn princess of Osraige who was a noteworthy figure in Irish politics during a critical time in Viking-age Ireland ...

= Máel Muire unnamed daughter = Conaing mac Flainn , , , _______________, , Flann , , , , , , (''mother's identity unknown'') , Gormlaith Domnall Eithne Domnall Dabaill Máel Dub Máel Dúin , = Flann Sinna , , , , Niall Glúndub, d. 919. = Gormflaith ingen Flann Sinna, c.870-948. , , Muirchertach mac Néill, d. 943.

References

Bibliography

*Webb, Alfred. ''A Compendium of Irish Biography: Comprising Sketches of Distinguished Irishmen and of Eminent Persons Connected with Ireland by Office or by Their Writings'', New York: Lemma Publishing Corporation, 1970. {{DEFAULTSORT:Niall Glundub Year of birth missing 919 deaths People from County Tyrone O'Neill dynasty 10th-century kings of Ailech 10th-century High Kings of Ireland Monarchs killed in action