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 Vikings of the Uí Ímair, led by Sitric Cáech. It was one in a series of battles initiated by the native Irish to attempt to drive the Vikings of the Uí Ímair from Ireland. The battle was a decisive victory for Sitric Cáech and the Uí Ímair, with Niall Glúndub and five other Irish kings dying in the battle.

Battle of Islandbridge
Date 14 September 919 Location near Islandbridge, County Dublin Result Decisive Viking victory
Belligerents
Vikings of the Uí Ímair	Irish coalition: Northern Uí Néill Ulaid Brega Airgíalla Mide South Brega
Commanders and leaders
Sitric Cáech	Niall Glúndub † Áed mac Eochocáin † Máel Craibe ua Duibsinig † Máel Mithig mac Flannacain † Conchobar mac Flainn † Cellach mac Fogartaig †
Strength
Unknown	Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

Background

The ruling Vikings of Dublin, the Uí Ímair, had been expelled from the city in 902 by a joint force led by Máel Finnia mac Flannacán, overking of Brega and Cerball mac Muirecáin, overking of Leinster.[1] However, this expulsion was temporary and Viking raids continued on Irish settlements. In 914 a large Viking fleet sailed to the previously Viking-controlled city of Waterford, and the following year more Vikings settled in Limerick, though Dublin itself remained outside Uí Ímair control.[2] In 917 two prominent members of the Uí Ímair, Ragnall and Sitric Cáech, grandsons of Ímar, sailed separate fleets to Ireland, Ragnall landing at Waterford and Sitric Cáech landing at Cenn Fuait in Leinster.[nb 1][4] Several native Irish kings gathered forces to try to drive off the Vikings once more, including Niall Glúndub, over-king of the Northern Uí Néill and High King of Ireland, and Augaire mac Ailella, over-king of Leinster. The Vikings fought and won a victory against Niall Glúndub and the men of the Uí Néill at the Battle of Mag Femen in Brega, and then won another victory against Augaire mac Ailella and the men of Leinster at Cenn Fuait.[nb 2][6] Sitric led his men on a triumphant return to Dublin, re-establishing Viking rule and installing himself as king, while Ragnall returned to England.[4]

Battle

In 919 a number of Irish kings banded together to try to expel the Vikings from Dublin once more. The known kings who took part in this coalition were Niall Glúndub of the Northern Uí Néill, Áed mac Eochocáin of Ulster, Máel Mithig mac Flannacain of Brega, Mael Craibe mac Duibsinig of Airgíalla, Conchobar mac Flainn of Mide, and Cellach mac Fogartaig of South Brega.[7] The historian Clare Downham has suggested that Niall Glundub and the other kings were emboldened by the departure of Ragnall from Ireland to try again to force out the Uí Ímair.[8] The forces of Sitric and Niall met near Islandbridge in modern day County Dublin on the fourteenth of September.[nb 3][9] The Annals of the Four Masters describe Niall's words before the battle:

Whoever wishes for a speckled boss, and a sword of sore-inflicting wounds, and a green javelin for wounding wretches, let him go early in the morning to Áth Cliath.[10]

The battle was an overwhelming victory for the Vikings; Niall and five of his ally kings died in the battle alongside many other Irish nobles.[11] The six slain kings were Niall Glúndub of the Northern Uí Néill, Áed mac Eochocáin of Ulster, Máel Mithig mac Flannacain of Brega, Mael Craibe mac Duibsinig of Airgíalla, Conchobar mac Flainn of Mide, and Cellach mac Fogartaig of South Brega.[7][nb 4] Other notable casualties include one of Niall Glúndub's kinsmen, a member of the ruling dynasty of the Southern Uí Néill, and Eiremón mac Cennétig, Chief of the Cenél Maine.[13]

The failure of this coalition to drive out the Vikings ensured the hold of the Uí Ímair on Dublin remained strong. Nevertheless, war between the Vikings and the native Irish continued, and the following year there was a battle between the Vikings of Dublin and Donnchad Donn, the brother of the slain king Conchobar mac Flainn and the new High King of Ireland.[8]

Notes

1. The exact location of "Cenn Fuait" is uncertain. The Annals of Ulster describe Cenn Fuait as being on the airer of Leinster. Airer is an Irish word meaning "coast" or "border region". Suggestions for the location include Confey near modern-day Leixlip, County Kildare and St Mullin's, County Carlow.[3]
2. King Augaire died in the battle.[5]
3. The Annals of Ulster give the date of the battle as the "eighteenth of the Calends of October". This corresponds to 14 September.[9]
4. The Cogad Gaedel re Gallaib mentions twelve kings other than Niall Glúndub who died in the battle, but these are not named by contemporary annals and modern historians name only six kings.[12]

References

Citations

1. Downham, p. 26
2. Downham, p. 31
3. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 917; Duffy, p. 123; Dictionary of the Irish Language, s.v. airer (letter A, column 199); Bartlett & Jeffery, p. 465
4. Downham, pp. 31, 273–274
5. Sawyer, pp. 97–98
6. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 917; Annals of the Four Masters, s.a. 917
7. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 919; Annals of Clonmacnoise, s.a. 919; Annals of the Four Masters, s.a. 919; Chronicon Scotorum, s.a. 919
8. Downham, p. 32
9. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 919
10. Annals of the Four Masters, s.a. 919
11. Forte, Oram and Pedersen, p. 103; Annals of Ulster, s.a. 919
12. Cogad Gaedel re Gallaib, pp. 35–37; Downham, p. 32; Forte, Oram and Pedersen, p. 103
13. Downham, p. 32; Chronicon Scotorum, s.a. 919

Primary sources

• "Annals of the Four Masters". Corpus of Electronic Texts (16 December 2013 ed.). University College Cork. 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
• "Annals of Ulster". Corpus of Electronic Texts (15 August 2012 ed.). University College Cork. 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
• "Chronicon Scotorum". Corpus of Electronic Texts (24 March 2010 ed.). University College Cork. 2010. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
• "Dictionary of the Irish Language". Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language (2012 ed.). Royal Irish Academy. 2012. Archived from the original on 2 January 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
• "Fragmentary Annals of Ireland". Corpus of Electronic Texts (5 September 2008 ed.). University College Cork. 2008. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
• Murphy, D, ed. (1896). The Annals of Clonmacnoise. Dublin: Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. Accessed via Internet Archive.
• Todd, JH, ed. (1867). Cogad Gaedel re Gallaib: The War of the Gaedhil with the Gaill. London: Longmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer. Accessed via Internet Archive.

Secondary sources

• Bartlett, Thomas; Jeffery, Keith (9 October 1997). A Military History of Ireland. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-62989-8.
• Downham, Clare (2007). Viking Kings of Britain and Ireland: The Dynasty of Ívarr to A.D. 1014. Edinburgh: Dunedin Academic Press. ISBN 978-1-903765-89-0.
• Duffy, Seán (15 January 2005). Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-94824-5.
• Forte, Angelo; Oram, Richard D.; Pedersen, Frederik (5 May 2005). Viking Empires. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-82992-2.
• Sawyer, Peter (January 2001). The Oxford Illustrated History of the Vikings. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-285434-6.

External links

• CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts at University College Cork. The Corpus of Electronic Texts includes the Annals of Ulster and the Four Masters, the Chronicon Scotorum and the Book of Leinster as well as Genealogies, and various Saints' Lives. Most are translated into English, or translations are in progress.