Dúngal mac Selbaig was

king King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

Dál Riata Dál Riata or Dál Riada (also Dalriada) () was a Gaels, Gaelic Monarchy, kingdom that encompassed the Inner Hebrides, western seaboard of Scotland and north-eastern Ireland, on each side of the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North ...

. His reign can best be placed in the years 723 to 726, beginning with the abdication of his father, Selbach mac Ferchair, who entered a monastery, and ending with the rise of Eochaid mac Echdach of the Cenél nGabráin. The High Medieval praise poem ''

Duan Albanach The Duan Albanach (Song of the Scots) is a Middle Gaelic poem. Written during the reign of Mael Coluim III, who ruled between 1058 and 1093, it is found in a variety of Irish sources, and the usual version comes from the ''Book of Lecan'' and ' ...

'' names Dúngal the Impetuous, and claims that he ruled for seven years. For over a generation before Dúngal's reign the

Cenél Loairn The Cenél Loairn, the descendants of Loarn mac Eirc, controlled parts of northern Argyll around the Firth of Lorne, most probably centred in Lorne but perhaps including the islands of Mull and Colonsay, Morvern and Ardnamurchan. The bounda ...

, to which he belonged, and the Cenél nGabráin had contested for control of Dál Riata. It seems that Dúngal's father had finally managed to defeat his rivals shortly before he abdicated. For whatever reason, Dúngal soon lost power to the Cenél nGabráin. His father left the monastery and attempted to restore his son, but failed. While Dúngal was no longer king of Dál Riata after 726, it may be that he remained ruler of the Cenél Loairn. Certainly he retained some following. In 731, he burned Tairpert Boitir, most probably Tarbert on

Loch Fyne Loch Fyne (, ; meaning "Loch of the Vine/Wine"), is a sea loch off the Firth of Clyde and forms part of the coast of the Cowal, Cowal Peninsula. Located on the west coast of Argyll and Bute, west of Scotland. It extends inland from the Sound o ...

which was in the lands of the Cenél nGabráin and possibly a

portage Portage or portaging ( CA: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a '' ...

site. In 733 the

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' () are annals of History of Ireland, 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 Luin� ...

report that Dúngal profaned

Tory Island Tory Island, or simply Tory, is an island 14.5 kilometres (7+3⁄4 nautical miles) off the north-west coast of County Donegal in the north-west of Ulster, the northern Provinces of Ireland, province in Ireland. It is officially known by its Iris ...

by forcibly removing Bruide, who is presumed to be the son of Óengus mac Fergusa, king of the

Picts The Picts were a group of peoples in what is now Scotland north of the Firth of Forth, in the Scotland in the early Middle Ages, Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and details of their culture can be gleaned from early medieval texts and Pic ...

. This entry is followed by the statement that Dúngal's cousin, Muiredach mac Ainbcellaig, became king of the Cenél Loairn, and it seems probable that the rise of Muiredach, and Dúngal's epithet, stem from his doings on Tory Island. In 734 Dúngal fled to Ireland, "to escape the power of Óengus". Dúngal later returned to Scotland, and was captured in 736, along with his brother Feredach, by Óengus. Their subsequent fates are unknown.

External links

The Annals of Ulster
a

Kings of Dál Riata 8th-century Irish monarchs 8th-century Scottish monarchs {{royalty-stub