Fingal mac Gofraid

Refer to caption
Excerpt from folio 32v of British Library Cotton Julius A VII (the Chronicle of Mann): "Fingal".[1]

Fingal mac Gofraid, and his father, Gofraid mac Sitriuc, were late eleventh-century rulers of the Kingdom of the Isles.[note 1] Although one source states that Gofraid mac Sitriuc's father was named Sitriuc, there is reason to suspect that this could be an error of some sort. There is also uncertainty as to which family Gofraid mac Sitriuc belonged to. One such family, descended from Amlaíb Cúarán, King of Northumbria and Dublin, appears to have cooperated with Diarmait mac Maíl na mBó, King of Leinster. Another family, that of Echmarcach mac Ragnaill, King of Dublin and the Isles, opposed Amlaíb Cúarán's apparent descendants, and was closely connected with Diarmait's adversaries, the Uí Briain kindred.

If Gofraid mac Sitriuc was a descendant of Amlaíb Cúarán, it could mean that he was installed in the Isles by Diarmait after the latter oversaw the apparent expulsion of Echmarcach in the 1060s. Membership of this family may also explain apparent amiable relationship that Gofraid mac Sitriuc and Fingal appear to have enjoyed with Gofraid Crobán, their immediate successor in the Isles. It could also explain an attack on Mann in 1073, conducted by a possible the Uí Briain and a possible kinsman of Echmarcach. On the other hand, if Gofraid mac Sitriuc was a close kinsman of Echmarcach, it is possible that he is identical to Gofraid ua Ragnaill, King of Dublin, a contemporary ruler who is known to have reigned in Dublin during a period of Uí Briain overlordship after Diarmait's death. This identification could mean that Gofraid ua Ragnaill immediately succeeded Echmarcach in both Dublin and the Isles.

Gofraid mac Sitriuc is stated in one source to have died in about 1070, after which Fingal succeeded him. Fingal later appears to have fended off an attack upon Mann by men with Irish connections. At some point in the 1070s the kingdom was conquered by Gofraid Crobán, although the circumstances of this event are uncertain. Whilst it is possible that the latter overthrew Fingal, this is by no means certain. In fact, the throne may well have been vacant when Gofraid Crobán conducted his campaigns to gain the kingship. Whatever the case, there is reason to suspect that descendants of Fingal ruled the Kingdom of the Rhinns following his demise.

  1. ^ Munch; Goss (1874) p. 50; Cotton MS Julius A VII (n.d.).
  2. ^ Duffy (2006); Beuermann (2002); Oram (2000); Candon (1988).
  3. ^ a b c Forte; Oram; Pedersen (2005).
  4. ^ Fuller (2009); Duffy (2006); Forte; Oram; Pedersen (2005); Beuermann (2002); Oram (2000); Candon (1988).
  5. ^ Duffy (2006); Forte; Oram; Pedersen (2005); Woolf (2004); Oram (2000).
  6. ^ Duffy (2006).
  7. ^ a b Moody; Martin; Byrne (2005).
  8. ^ Oram (2000).
  9. ^ Fuller (2009).
  10. ^ Woolf (2004); Oram (2000).


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