Níall of Carrick (also Neil) (
Carrick, 1212 - 1256) was the second man to bear the title
Mormaer
In early medieval Scotland, a mormaer was the Gaelic name for a regional or provincial ruler, theoretically second only to the King of Scots, and the senior of a '' Toísech'' (chieftain). Mormaers were equivalent to English earls or Continenta ...
, or
Earl
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the Peerages in the United Kingdom, peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ...
, of
Carrick. He was successor of
mormaer
In early medieval Scotland, a mormaer was the Gaelic name for a regional or provincial ruler, theoretically second only to the King of Scots, and the senior of a '' Toísech'' (chieftain). Mormaers were equivalent to English earls or Continenta ...
Donnchadh of Carrick.
Life
Originally he was believed to be the son of Donnchadh and wife Avelina (FitzAlan) Stewart, however, it is now believed that he was more likely their grandson, the son of Donnchadh's oldest son and heir
Cailean mac Donnchadh. Cailean, also known as Colin and Nicholaus of Carrick, predeceased his father and therefore upon Donnchadh's death in 1250, the title of Mormaer came to Niall. It has been suggested that Cailean's wife, Niall's mother, was a daughter of Niall Ruadh, briefly king of
Tir Eoghain. Niall's grandfather Donnchadh held lands in
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
, such a marriage of his son would have reinforced Donnchadh's Irish alliances and would account for the use of the name Niall. It would also explain the strong alliance with the Ó Neill held by Niall's grandsons.
[Barrow, ''Robert Bruce'', pp. 34–35;, 430, n. 26] As the son of Cailean, Niall had one sister, Afraig, who married
Gilleasbaig of Menstrie, a baron of Clackmannanshire who was the first attested man to bear the surname "Campbell".
Niall married his cousin Margaret Stewart, daughter of
Walter Stewart, 3rd High Steward of Scotland, and wife Bethóc or Beatrix Mac Gille Críst of Angus, and together they had four daughters, the eldest of which was Margaret, better known as Marjorie, or Marsaili. On 12 September 1255 Níall, having no male heirs, granted the chiefship of the clan to his nephew Roland and his heirs, giving them all the powers in respect to the ''ceann ceneóil'' (head of kin). This grant was confirmed by King
Alexander III at
Stirling
Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...
in 1276.
Niall died in 1256 and was succeeded by his daughter
Marjory, who took the title 3rd Countess of Carrick. The latter passed the mormaerdom on to her son
Robert the Bruce
Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (), was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert led Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against Kingdom of Eng ...
, who became King
Robert I of Scotland.
Notes
References
*
Barrow, G. W. S., ''Robert Bruce and the community of the realm of Scotland'', 3rd ed., (Edinburgh, 2005)
* MacQueen, Hector L., "Survival and Success: the Kennedys of Dunure," in Steve Boardman & Alasdair Ross (eds.) ''The Exercise of Power in Medieval Scotland 1200-1500'', (Portland, 2003), pp. 67–94
{{Earls of Carrick
1212 births
1256 deaths
Nobility from South Ayrshire
Mormaers of Carrick
13th-century mormaers