Eóganacht Áine or Eóganacht Áine Cliach was a princely house of the

Eóganachta The Eóganachta (Modern , ) were an Irish dynasty centred on Rock of Cashel, 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 De ...

, dynasty of

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

during the 5th–12th centuries. They took their name from the Hill of

Áine Áine () is an Irish goddess of summer, wealth, and sovereignty. She is associated with midsummer and the sun,MacKillop, James (1998) ''Dictionary of Celtic Mythology'' Oxford: Oxford University Press pp.10, 16, 128 and is sometimes represent ...

() near the present day village of Knockainy,

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

. This region () of ''Cliú'' is centred on the historical barony of Smallcounty in eastern Limerick. The nearby village of

Emly Emly or Emlybeg () is a village in County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is a civil parish in the historical Barony (Ireland), barony of Clanwilliam (County Tipperary), Clanwilliam. It is also an Ecclesiastical parish in the Roman ...

was the ecclesiastical center of Munster at the time. The clan was descended from Ailill mac Nad Froích, the brother of

Óengus mac Nad Froích Óengus mac Nad Froích (430-489) was an Eoganachta and the first Christian King of Munster The kings of Munster () ruled the Kingdom of Munster in Ireland from its establishment during the Irish Iron Age until the High Middle Ages. Accordi ...

(died 489), the first Christian King of Munster. The Eóganacht Áine were considered part of the 'inner circle' of Eóganachta dynasties., p. 536 This also included 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 (County Tipperary) which was the capital of the early Catholic kingdom of Munster. They were de ...

and Eóganacht Glendamnach branches. These three branches were based in Aurmumu (Eastern Munster) around the

Galtee Mountains Galtymore or Galteemore () is a mountain in the province of Munster, Ireland. At , it is one of Ireland's highest mountains, being the 12th-highest on the Arderin list, and 14th-highest on the Vandeleur-Lynam list. Galtymore has the 4th-highe ...

, and the three branches rotated the kingship of Munster in the 7th and much of the 8th centuries. This rotation was broken by Máel Dúin mac Áedo of Eoganacht Locha Léin. The main clan in the 7th and 8th centuries were known as the Ua nÉnna, descended from Énda mac Crimthainn, the grandson of Ailill. One of the last Kings of Munster from this house was Cenn Fáelad hua Mugthigirn. By the 12th century, the ruling house was the Ó Ciarmhaic or O'Kirwick/Kerwick and

Kirby Kirby may refer to: Buildings * Kirby Building, a skyscraper in Dallas, Texas, United States * Kirby Lofts, a building in Houston, Texas, United States * Kirby Hall, an Elizabethan country house near Corby, Northamptonshire, England * Kirby Ho ...

. They were ruined by the

Norman invasion of Ireland The Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland took place during the late 12th century, when Anglo-Normans gradually conquered and acquired large swathes of land in Ireland over which the monarchs of England then claimed sovereignty. The Anglo-Normans ...

References

Sources

* 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

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eoganacht Aine Kings of Munster Áine Eóganachta