Nath Í, also known as Dathí, son of

Fiachrae Fiachrae was an Irish prince, the son of the high king Eochaid Mugmedón (d.362) by his wife Mongfind, sister of Crimthann mac Fidaig (d.367).Francis J.Byrne, ''Irish Kings and High-Kings'', Table 1 He was ancestor of the Uí Fiachrach dynasti ...

, son of Eochaid Mugmedon, was a semi-historical Irish king of the 5th century, the father of the likely-historical king

Ailill Molt Ailill mac Nath Í (died c. 482 or 484), called Ailill Molt, is included in most lists of the High Kings of Ireland and is also called King of Connacht. His cognomen, ''molt'', means " ram" but its origin is unknown. Family Ailill was said to b ...

and the ancestor of the

Uí Fiachrach The Uí Fiachrach () were a royal dynasty who originated in, and whose descendants later ruled, the ''coicead'' or ''fifth'' of Connacht (a western province of Ireland) at different times from the mid-first millennium onwards. They claimed descen ...

dynasties of early medieval

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

. His mother was Béḃinn. According to legend, he was a

High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ) 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 was later sometimes assigned anachronously or to leg ...

, and died after being struck by lightning while on an expedition to the Alps.

History

Historically, Nath Í is primarily known for his descendants. His son

was likely a historical 5th century king.Philip Irwin, "Nath Í mac Fiachrach (supp. d. 445?)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004
accessed 6 September 2015
/ref> Two more sons, Echu and Fiachnae, were the ancestors of the Uí Fiachrach Aidni and the Uí Fiachrach Muaide respectively, both early medieval dynasties in Connacht. A fourth son, Amalgaid, was the ancestor of

Tírechán Tírechán was a 7th-century Ireland, Irish bishop from north Connacht, specifically the Killala Bay area, in what is now County Mayo. Background Based on a knowledge of Irish customs of the times, historian Terry O’Hagan has concluded that T ...

, the 7th century bishop and biographer of St. Patrick. Nath Í's own status and position are disputed. Most early Irish sources, including the ''

Lebor Gabála Érenn ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of Ireland's Taking"; Modern Irish spelling: ''Leabhar Gabhála Éireann'', known in English as ''The Book of Invasions'') is a collection of poems and prose narratives in the Irish language inten ...

'',R. A. Stewart Macalister (ed. & trans.), ''Lebor Gabála Érenn: The Book of the Taking of Ireland Part V'', Irish Texts Society, 1956, pp. 350-359 the ''

Annals of the Four Masters The ''Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland'' () or the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' () are chronicles of Middle Ages, medieval Irish history. The entries span from the Genesis flood narrative, Deluge, dated as 2,242 Anno Mundi, years after crea ...

''John O'Donovan (ed. & trans.), ''Annala Rioghachta Eireann: Annals of the kingdom of Ireland by the Four Masters'' Vol. I, Hodges, Smith & Co., 1856, pp. 128-129, 144-145 and

Geoffrey Keating Geoffrey Keating (; – ) was an Irish historian. He was born in County Tipperary, Ireland, and is buried in Tubrid Graveyard in the parish of Ballylooby-Duhill. He became a Catholic priest and a poet. Biography It was generally believed unt ...

's ''Foras Feasa ar Éirinn'',Patrick S. Dineen (ed. & trans.), ''The History of Ireland by Geoffrey Keating, D. D.'', Vol II, Irish Texts Society, 1908, pp. 412-413; Vol 3, Irish Texts Society, 1908, pp. 42-43 place him in the traditional

list of High Kings of Ireland Medieval Irish historical tradition held that Ireland had a High King (''Ard Rí'') based at Tara since ancient times, and compilations like the 11th-century ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'', followed by Early Modern works like the ''Annals of the Fou ...

, after

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. ...

and before Niall's son Lóegaire, with Nath Í's son, Ailill Molt, succeeding Lóegaire. However, he is not included in the earliest list of kings of Tara, the '' Baile Chuinn Chétchathaig''. T. F. O'Rahilly argues that Nath Í did not rule at Tara, but was in fact a king of the province of Connacht, although he accepts that Ailill Molt was a king of Tara.T. F. O'Rahilly, ''Early Irish History and Mythology'', Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1946 However, Nath Í's name does not appear on the Connacht regnal lists, and Ailill Molt's does. T. M. Charles-Edwards considers it a possibility that neither were kings of Tara, but that both were included later, when members of the

dynasties were prominent and it was felt politically necessary to include their ancestors in the ranks of former High Kings.T. M. Charles-Edwards, ''Early Christian Ireland'', Cambridge University Press, 2000, p. 462 An early list of Nath Í's battles takes him outside Ireland, including battles in

Strathclyde Strathclyde ( in Welsh language, Welsh; in Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic, meaning 'strath

alley An alley or alleyway is a narrow lane, footpath, path, or passageway, often reserved for pedestrians, which usually runs between, behind, or within buildings in towns and cities. It is also a rear access or service road (back lane), or a path, w ...

of the River Clyde') was one of nine former Local government in Scotland, local government Regions and districts of Scotland, regions of Scotland cre ...

and Kincardine in Scotland, and an expedition across the English Channel to the Alps. In 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� ...

'' there is an entry for the year 445 which originally consisted solely of Nath Í's name. Later writers, presuming this to be his death notice, added the detail that he was struck by lightning in the Alps, circumstances also recounted in the ''Lebor Gabála'', Keating and the ''Annals of the Four Masters'', the latter of which dates it to 428. According to legend, his followers carried his body back to Ireland, winning ten battles on the way, and buried him at Cruachan, capital of Connacht. A

standing stone A menhir (; from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ''men'', "stone" and ''hir'' or ''hîr'', "long"), standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large upright rock (geology), stone, emplaced in the ground by humans, typically dating from the Eur ...

said to mark his grave is part of the

Rathcroghan Rathcroghan () is a complex of archaeological sites near Tulsk in County Roscommon, Ireland. It is identified as the site of Cruachan, the traditional capital of the Connachta, the prehistoric and early historic rulers of the western territory ...

complex of archeological sites near

Tulsk Tulsk () is a village in County Roscommon, Ireland, on the N5 road (Ireland), N5 roads in Ireland, national primary road between Strokestown and Bellanagare. It sits at around 19 km north of Roscommon, Roscommon town. Heritage Near Tulsk ...

County Roscommon County Roscommon () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the province of Connacht and the Northern and Western Region. It is the List of Irish counties by area, 11th largest Irish county by area and Li ...

. O'Rahilly and Francis J. Byrne observe out that Nath Í's death-tale is modelled on that of

, and as with Niall, the early Irish name for Britain, ''Alba'', may have been confused with ''Elpa'', the Alps. O'Rahilly therefore concludes that "he was a king of Connacht in the first half of the fifth century, that he appears to have acquired fame in his day as a leader of predatory expeditions to Britain, and that he died in or about the year 445, and was probably buried at Cruachain."

Legends

The medieval glossary ''Cóir Anmann'' ("the fitness of names") and Keating say his given name was Feradach, and that he was given the nickname ''dathí'', "active, quick" because of his vigour in taking up arms. Keating adds that he had three wives: Fial, daughter of Eochaid; Eithne, daughter of Orach, the mother of Aill Molt; and Ruad, daughter of Airtech Uichtlethan, who died giving birth to another of his sons, Fiachrae Elgach. His other sons were Amalgaid, Echu and Cobthach. According to legend, after the accession of

as High King, there was a civil war between Niall's brothers Brión and Fiachrae, Nath Í's father, over the kingship of Connacht. Fiachrae was defeated and captured, but Nath Í continued the war and eventually defeated and killed Brión. Fiachrae was released and became king of Connacht.Standish H. O'Grady (ed. and tr.), "Death of Crimthann son of Fidach, and of Eochaidh Muighmedóin's three sons: Brian, Ailill, Fiachra", in ''Silva Gadelica'', Williams and Norgate, 1892, pp. 373-8 A fuller version of his death-tale, as mentioned to in the annals, is found in the saga ''Aided Nath Í'' ("the death of Nath Í"), a later version of the ''Lebor Gabála'', and Keating, in which he besieges a tower in which Forménus, king of Thrace, lives as a hermit, having forsaken his kingdom for a religious life. Forménus prays that God will punish him, and he is struck by lightning, although the ''Lebor Gabála'' adds that "scholars suppose" Forménus shot him with an arrow.

History

Legends

References

Further reading