Content deleted Content added
m replaced: finnally → finally, typo(s) fixed: Subsequently → Subsequently,, viking → Viking, from 895–900 → from 895 to 900, ’s → 's |
|||
(19 intermediate revisions by 16 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{see also|History of Ireland (800–1169)}}▼
{{EngvarB|date=October 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=
[[File:Ireland900.png|right|thumb|300px|Ireland c. 900]]
The First Viking Age in [[Ireland]] began in 795, when [[Vikings]] began carrying out hit-and-run raids on [[Gaelic Ireland|Gaelic Irish]] coastal settlements. Over the following decades the raiding parties became bigger and better organized; inland settlements were targeted as well as coastal ones; and the raiders built naval encampments known as [[longphort]]s to allow them to remain in Ireland throughout the winter. In the mid 9th century, Viking leader [[Turgesius|Turgeis]] or ''Thorgest'' founded a stronghold at Dublin, plundered [[Laigin|Leinster]] and [[Kingdom of Meath|Meath]], and raided other parts of Ireland. He was killed by the [[High King of Ireland|High King]], [[Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid]], which was followed by several Irish victories against the Vikings and the seizure of Dublin in 849. Shortly after, a new group of Vikings known as the [[Dubgaill and Finngaill|Dubgaill]] ("dark foreigners") came to Ireland and clashed with the earlier Viking settlers, now called the [[Dubgaill and Finngaill|Finngaill]] ("fair foreigners").
The wavering fortunes of these three groups and their shifting alliances, together with the shortcomings of contemporary records and the inaccuracy of later accounts, make this period one of the most complicated and least understood in the fledgling city's history. In 853 a Viking warlord called Amlaíb ({{lang-on|Óláfr}}, possibly [[Olaf the White]]) arrived and made himself [[Kingdom of Dublin|king of Dublin]]. He ruled along with his brothers Ímar (''Ívarr'', possibly [[Ivar the Boneless]]) and Auisle (''Ásl''). For the next fifteen years or so, they used Dublin as their base for a series of campaigns against Irish kingdoms. During these conflicts they briefly allied themselves with several Irish kings. The Dublin Vikings also carried out a number of raids in Great Britain at this time. The deaths of Ivar (c.873) and Olaf (c.874) were followed by internecine conflict among the Vikings. Although intermittent warfare between the Vikings and the Irish continued, these inner conflicts weakened the Viking colonies and made it easier for the Irish to unite against them. In 902, [[Cerball mac Muirecáin]], king of Leinster, and Máel Findia mac Flannacáin, king of [[Kings of Brega|Brega]], launched a two-pronged attack on Dublin and drove the Vikings from the city. However, in 914 the Vikings now known as the [[Uí Ímair]] (House of Ivar) would return to Ireland, marking the beginning of the Second Viking Age. ==Early Viking raids==
[[File:Early Scandinavian Dublin - North-East.png|right|thumb|Rathlin Island]]
In the year 795 Vikings (probably of [[Norway|Norwegian]] origin) raided islands off the coast of Ireland for the first time.<ref>AU 795.3: "The burning of Rechru by the heathens...." AFM 790.6 [=795]. Rechru has been variously identified with [[Lambay Island]], off the coast of Dublin, and [[Rathlin Island]], off the northeast coast of Ireland. See {{Cite web |first=Donnchadh |last=Ó Corráin |url=http://www.ucc.ie/celt/General%20Vikings%20in%20Ireland.
People taken captive during the Viking raids in Western Europe, such as Ireland, could be sold to [[Slavery in al-Andalus|Moorish Spain]] via the [[Dublin slave trade]]<ref name="aroundtheworldineightyyears.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.aroundtheworldineightyyears.com/viking-dublin/|title=The Slave Market of Dublin|date=23 April 2013}}</ref> or transported to [[Hedeby]] or [[Brännö]] in Scandinavia and from there
via the [[Volga trade route]] to Russia, where slaves and furs were sold to Muslim merchants in exchange for Arab silver ''[[dirham]]'' and silk, which have been found in [[Birka]], [[Wolin|Wollin]] and [[Dublin]];<ref>The New Cambridge Medieval History: Volume 3, C.900-c.1024. (1995). Storbritannien: Cambridge University Press. p. 91</ref> initially this trade route between Europe and the Abbasid Caliphate passed [[Khazar slave trade|via the Khazar Kaghanate]],<ref>The World of the Khazars: New Perspectives. Selected Papers from the Jerusalem 1999 International Khazar Colloquium. (2007). Nederländerna: Brill. p. 232</ref> and later it went [[Volga Bulgarian slave trade|via Volga Bulgaria]] and from there by caravan to [[Khwarazm]], to the [[Samanid slave trade|Samanid slave market]] in Central Asia and finally via Iran to [[slavery in the Abbasid Caliphate|the Abbasid Caliphate]].<ref>The New Cambridge Medieval History: Volume 3, C.900-c.1024. (1995). Storbritannien: Cambridge University Press. p. 504</ref>
This period lasted from 795 until 813, after which there occurred a hiatus of eight years.<ref>The ''Annals of Ulster'' record no Viking raids for the years 814 through 820.</ref>
[[File:Early Scandinavian Dublin - Southern Ui Neill.svg|right|thumb|200px|Southern Uí Néill]]
Line 17 ⟶ 24:
==Turgesius==
[[File:Early Scandinavian Dublin - Carlingford.png|right|thumb|Conaille Muirthemne.]]
For more than a dozen years in the middle of the 9th century, most of the Viking raids in Ireland appear to have been part of a co-ordinated effort to conquer the country on behalf of the King of Laithlind. If later accounts are to be believed, this campaign was initially masterminded by a warlord referred to in Irish annals as [[Turgesius]], Turgéis or Turges.<ref>The [[Old Norse]] form was ''Þurgestr''. Variant forms that are sometimes found include ''Þorgest'' (Thorgest), ''Þorgils'', ''Þorgisl'' and Þorgerr. The Old Norse forms of personal names, attested in the 12th or 13th century, are often quite different from the original [[Proto-Norse]] forms; the names recorded in contemporary British and Irish sources have the virtue of being contemporaneous with the original Scandinavian forms.</ref> According to the medieval Icelandic historian [[Snorri Sturluson]], Thorgils was a son of the first King of Norway [[Harald I of Norway|Haraldr hárfagri]] (Harald Fairhair).<ref>{{cite book |title=Heimskringla |last=Sturluson |first=Snorri |
From perhaps as early as 832 until 845 Turgesius terrorised the country and plundered dozens of Christian sites. In the process he supposedly oversaw the establishment of several Norse settlements – including one at [[Dublin]] in 841 – and became master of the northern half of the island, known in the Irish annals as ''[[Leath Cuinn|Leth Cuinn]]'', or “[[Conn of the Hundred Battles|Conn's Half]]”. In the ''[[Heimskringla|Saga of Harald Hårfagre]]'', [[Snorri Sturluson|Snorri]] tells us that [[Thorgest|Þorgils]] ruled his newly conquered domains from Dublin, and that he was "a long time king over Dublin". In the ''[[Annals of Ulster]]'', however, Turgéis is only mentioned in connection with an encampment on [[Lough Ree]] in 845.<ref>AU 845.3.</ref> It is likely that his role in history was greatly exaggerated by later chroniclers and that he played no direct part in the foundation of Viking Dublin.
Line 23 ⟶ 30:
==The first Norse settlements in Dublin==
[[File:Early Scandinavian Dublin - South-East.svg|right|thumb|The south-east of Ireland ''c.'' 900.]]
In 837 a fleet of sixty [[longship]]s sailed up the [[River Liffey]] and raided "churches, forts and dwellings", including presumably those at Dublin.<ref>AU 837.3; CS 837; CGG 12; AClon 834 [=837]. According to the latter there were sixty-five ships in this fleet.</ref> Later in the same year, a certain Saxolb (Söxulfr), "chief of the foreigners", was killed in Brega by the Uí Colgain, a branch of the Cíanachta Breg.<ref>AU 837.9; CS 837; CGG 21; AClon 834 [=837].</ref> The ''[[Chronicon Scotorum]]'' and the ''[[Annals of Clonmacnoise]]'' ascribe "the first taking and possession of the Danes in Dublin" to this year. But this was only a foretaste of things to come. In 841 the Vikings returned to Dublin, this time not as raiders but as conquerors. They seized the ecclesiastical settlement at [[History of Dublin to 795#Duiblinn|Duiblinn]] and established a ''longphort'', or naval encampment, nearby; where precisely is still a matter of debate, but the present site of [[Dublin Castle]] is a likely candidate, as it overlooked the Black Pool (''Duiblinn'', from which the city of Dublin takes its name), which would have served as a natural harbour.<ref>AU 841.4 and 842.2; CS 841 and 842; AClon 838 [=841] and 839 [=842].</ref> Four years later the ''Annals of Ulster'' refer also to foreigners at Áth Cliath; this may simply be a loose reference to the settlement at Duiblinn, but it is possible that the native settlement of Áth Cliath was also seized and a second ''longphort'' established on the Liffey – possibly at Usher's Island.<ref>AU 845.12</ref> These settlements were temporary wintering camps ({{lang-on|vintrsetl}}) and probably amounted to little more than pirate bases. From their new base in Dublin, the Vikings plundered many territories in Leinster and the Midlands as far as the [[Slieve Bloom Mountains]].<ref>AU 841.4; CS 841; AClon 838 [=841]; CGG 16; {{Cite web|first=Donnchadh|last=Ó Corráin|url=http://www.ucc.ie/celt/General%20Vikings%20in%20Ireland.
In 845 Turgesius was captured by the King of [[Kingdom of Mide|Mide]] [[Máel Sechnaill mac Máele Ruanaid|Máel Sechnaill]] and drowned in Loch Uair ([[Lough Owel]] in [[County Westmeath]]).<ref>AU 845.8: According to the [https://books.google.com/books?id=ot4RAAAAYAAJ
The following year the Norsemen suffered a series of decisive setbacks. Máel Sechnaill defeated them at Forrach (Farrow near [[Mullingar]] in County Westmeath).<ref>AU 848.4; CS 848. Todd (1867), p. lxviii, identifies Forrach with Farragh, which is near [[Skreen]] in [[County Meath]], but Hogan (1910), s.v. ''forrach'', identifies it with Farrow, a townland on the shores of Lough Iron. CGG 21 and 22 also record victories by the Uí Néill (i.e. Máel Sechnaill) at [[Ardbraccan]] in County Meath ([[Geoffrey Keating]] understood this to be the battle in 837 in which the Uí Colgain killed Saxolb), at Caisglinne (location unknown, but this possibly refers to the same victory as that at Forrach), and at Rathcommair (probably near [[Clonard, County Meath]]).</ref> [[Tomrair]] (Þórir), the heir-designate of the King of Laithlind, was slain in a battle with [[Ólchobar mac Cináeda]] the [[King of Munster]] and [[Lorcán mac Cellaig]] the [[King of Leinster]] at Sciath Nechtain (near [[Castledermot]] in [[County Kildare]]).<ref>AU 848.5; AI 848.2.</ref> In the same year [[Tigernach mac Fócartai]] King of [[Kings of Brega|Loch Gabhair]] (Lagore, the royal seat of South Brega) inflicted a significant defeat on the Norsemen in an oakwood at Dísert Do-Chonna.<ref>AU 848.6; CS 848. The location of Dísert Do-Chonna is unknown, but [[St Mochonna]] was associated with the coast of north County Dublin, which was in Brega.</ref>
Line 33 ⟶ 40:
==Dubgaill and Findgaill==
:{{See also|Dubgaill and Finngaill}}
In 851 a significant development took place: "The Dubgenti came to Áth Cliath, made a great slaughter of the Findgaill, and plundered the naval encampment, both people and property."<ref>AU 851.3; CS 851; CGG 20.</ref> It is believed that this refers to the first appearance in Ireland of a new faction of Vikings. Called the ''Dubgaill'' or ''Dubgenti'' ("Dark Foreigners" or "Dark Gentiles"),<ref>[http://www.dil.ie/browse-small.asp ''Dictionary of the Irish Language''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100609205834/http://www.dil.ie/browse-small.asp |date=9 June 2010 }}: ''dub''; ''Gall''; ''genti''.</ref> these were possibly Scandinavians of Danish or Anglo-Danish origin who hoped to take advantage of the shifting fortunes of the town's inhabitants, known as the Findgaill or Findgenti ("Fair Foreigners" or "Fair Gentiles"),<ref>[http://www.dil.ie/browse-small.asp ''Dictionary of the Irish Language''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100609205834/http://www.dil.ie/browse-small.asp |date=9 June 2010 }}: ''finn''.</ref> who were possibly Scandinavians of
The leaders of the Findgaill in this encounter are called Stain (or Zain) and Iercne (or Iargna). In the ''Fragmentary Annals'' Zain and Iargna are co-regents (''leithrí''). Iercne ({{lang-on|Járnkné}}) died in the battle; his sons are mentioned in connection with Dublin in 883 and 886. The leader of the Dubgaill is called Horm (?Ormr), who was slain in 856 by [[Rhodri the Great]] the [[Kingdom of Gwynedd|King of Gwynedd]].<ref>AU 852.3; AFM 850.16 [=852]; CS 852; CGG 20; FAI 235. According to the ''Fragmentary Annals of Ireland'', the Dubgaill were initially defeated in this encounter, before rallying and overcoming the Findgaill, whose fleet numbered 160 ships. The battle lasted "three days and three nights" according to the ''Chronicon Scotorum''.</ref> Later that year the Norsemen suffered two defeats in the same month at the hands of the Cianachta Breg: one at Inch near [[Balrothery]] in County Dublin, and one at Ráith Aldain (Raholland, County Meath).<ref>AU 852.8; CGG 22. The territory of the Cianachta Breg extended north from the Liffey to the [http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~irlkik/ihm/barony-map-ireland.htm baronies] of Upper and Lower Duleek in County Meath.</ref> A year later, in 853, a Viking warlord called Amlaíb ({{lang-on|Óláfr}}) came to Dublin and made himself king – the first in the fledgling city's history – receiving hostages from the Vikings and tribute from the Irish.<ref>AU 853.2; CS 853; AFM 851.15 [=853]; CGG 23. See also the ''Fragmentary Annals of Ireland'' FAI 239: "Also in this year, i.e. the sixth year of the reign of Máel Sechlainn [851, though the previous entry records an event which is dated in the corrected ''Annals of Ulster'' in 849], Amlaíb Conung, son of the king of Lochlann, came to Ireland, and he brought with him a proclamation of many tributes and taxes from his father, and he departed suddenly. Then his younger brother Ímar came after him to levy the same tribute.". In the same annals, FAI 259 seems to duplicate this entry under the year 853: "Amlaib, son of the king of Lochlann, came to Ireland, and the foreigners of Ireland gave him hostages." Did Amlaíb levy tribute in 851 before settling in Dublin in 853?</ref> Amlaíb is described in the ''Annals of Ulster'' as "the son of the King of Laithlind"; it would appear, then, that he was the leader of the Findgaill, sent by his father GuÞfriÞ<ref>FAI 401 identifies his father as Gothfraidh mac Ragnaill.</ref> to do battle with the Dubgaill.<ref>Ó Corráin (1998), p. 24. Dumville (2005) and Downham (2007), however, believe that Amlaíb and his kinsmen belonged to the Dubgaill, who supplanted the Findgaill around this time.</ref> Amlaíb has been identified with two individuals who appear in [[Old Norse]] sources, but whose historicity and provenance are uncertain: [[Olaf the White|Óláfr inn hvíti]] (Olaf the White) and [[Olaf Gudrødsson|Óláfr Guðrøðarson]] (Olaf the Son of Guðrøðr). Óláfr inn hvíti was the son of [[Ingjald Helgasson]] and a descendant of both [[Halfdan Hvitbeinn|Hálfdan hvítbeinn]] (Halfdan Whitelegs) of [[Vestfold]] in Norway and Ragnar Lodbrok.<ref>''Lándnámabók'', Chapter 15.</ref> Óláfr Guðrøðarsson was the son of [[Gudrød the Hunter]].<ref>''Ynglinga Saga'', Chapter 53.</ref> Like so many other Scandinavian characters in this period of Irish history, Amlaíb's precise identity is still uncertain, though he is probably the same person as [[Amlaíb Conung|Amhlaoibh Conung]] (Óláfr konungr, or Olaf the King), who is mentioned in the ''Fragmentary Annals of Ireland''.<ref>FAI 239.</ref>
Line 67 ⟶ 76:
==Domestic troubles==
In 866, when Amlaíb and Auisle were invading Fortriu, Flann mac Conaing King of Brega took advantage of their absence to exact revenge for their invasion of 863, inflicting a significant defeat on the Norsemen.<ref>FAI 326.</ref> In the same year [[Cennétig mac Gaíthéne]], king of [[Loígis]], defeated the Norsemen at Mindroichet ([http://www.logainm.ie/?parentID=125&typeID=BF&placeID=27810&uiLang=en Mondrehid] in [[County Laois]]).<ref>AFM 864.8 [=866]; FAI 329; AClon 865 [=866].</ref> In 867 a force led by Cennétig and [[Máel Ciaráin mac Rónáin]] burned Amlaíb's fortress at Clondalkin, near Dublin, and killed 100 of his followers.<ref>AU 867.8; AFM 865.12 [=867]; FAI 349; AClon 865 [=867]. See also AClon 897, which seems to be a duplicate entry. Máel Ciaráin mac Rónáin was a champion of the Leinster nobility, though he was originally of the [[Ciarraige Luachra]] of West Munster.</ref> They followed this up with a successful attack on Dublin itself in the same year, in which Odolb Micle was killed. This shadowy figured may have been Amlaíb and Ímar's regent.<ref>FAI 362; AFM 865.15 [=867].</ref> Undeterred by this setback, Amlaíb plundered the monastery of Lis Mór in Munster ([[Lismore, County Waterford]]) before the end of the year.<ref>AI 867.1; CGG 29, which has been misplaced.</ref> According to one interpretation of ''Cogad Gáedel re Gallaib'', it was on this occasion that Auisle lost his life.<ref>CGG 24. According to Chapter 29, Foenteran mac Drognean, chieftain of the Fir Maige Féne (of [[Fermoy]]), is said to have burned Amlaíb's camp on the same night that Lismore was attacked, and Amlaíb afterwards murdered Auisle. Both events – the burning of the camp and the murder of Auisle – are attributed to the intercession of St [[Mochuda]], the patron of Lismore.</ref> In 869 Máel Ciaráin mac Rónáin came to a grisly end. Having been expelled from Leinster by jealous rivals, he allied himself by marriage to the High King Áed Findliath and invaded Leinster. He was defeated, however; his body was hacked to pieces and his head cut off. Subsequently, his head was given to the Norsemen of Dublin, who used it for target-practice before casting it into the sea.<ref>FAI 377.</ref> In the same year, Amlaíb plundered the great monastic settlement of [[Armagh]].<ref>AU 869.6; CS 869; AClon 867 [=869].</ref> This raid was possibly launched in retaliation for the death of his son Carlus, who had lost his life the previous year fighting for the kings of Leinster and Brega against Áed Findliath (the protector of Armagh) in the Battle of Cella Ua nDaigri (Killineer, [[County Louth]]).<ref>AU 868.4; CS 868; FAI 366. AFM 866.9 [=868]; AB 255; AClon 866 [=868]; AI 868. CGG 29 records that 500 Findgenti fell in this battle, which would seem to imply that the ruling dynasty of Dublin – to which Carlus belonged – were Findgenti.</ref> We are not told when precisely the alliance between Amlaíb and Áed Findliath (established around 860) fell apart; possibly it happened when Áed became High King in 862.
In 870, while Amlaíb and Ímar were besieging Dumbarton, Áed Findliath laid waste Leinster "from Dublin to Gowran", though it is not clear whether Dublin itself was attacked during this campaign.<ref>AU 870.2; AClon 868 [=870]. Dublin and Gowran were on the borders of Leinster, so the expression may mean "the whole of Leinster".</ref> In the same year, a leader of the Dubgaill called Úlfr invaded eastern Ireland and killed Máel Sechnaill mac Néill, one of the two kings of South Brega .<ref>AU 870.7; CS 870; AClon 868 [=870].</ref>
Line 75 ⟶ 84:
Ímar's death is recorded in the ''Annals of Ulster'' and the ''Chronicon Scotorum'' under the year 873.<ref>AU 873.3; CS 873. The description of Ímar as "king of the Norsemen of all Ireland and Britain" supports the identification of Ímar with Ingware, though the term ''Britanniae'' may have excluded the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, where Ingware campaigned.</ref> In the ''Fragmentary Annals of Ireland'', under the same year, it is reported that "the king of Lochlainn" died of a "sudden horrible disease".<ref>FAI 409: "Ég righ Lochlann, .i. Gothfraid, do tedhmaimm grána opond. Sic quod Domino placuit." ("The king of Lochlainn died, i.e. Gothfraid, of a sudden horrible disease. Thus it pleased God.") The identification of ''righ Lochlann'' ("the king of Lochlainn") as Gothfraid (i.e. Ímar's alleged father) was probably added by [[Dubhaltach Mac Fhirbhisigh|Duald MacFirbis]] or his anonymous secretary, who made the only extant copy of these annals in the 17th century. In the original 11th-century manuscript the subject of the entry was simply called ''righ Lochlann'', so this entry probably records the death of Ímar, whose death is not otherwise noted in the ''Fragmentary Annals'', rather than that of his father. [[John O'Donovan (scholar)|John O'Donovan]], who edited and translated the [https://books.google.com/books?id=B9T1-vIu3BMC ''Fragmentary Annals''] (p. 198) in 1860, took this entry to refer to Ímar, as did James Henthorn Todd in his translation of [https://books.google.com/books?id=TgMGAAAAQAAJ ''Cogad Gaedel re Gallaib''] (p. 270). Earlier in the ''Fragmentary Annals'', Ímar and Amlaíb are called ''na righ Lochlann'', or "the kings of Lochlainn" (FAI 388). See Ó Corráin (1998), pp. 36 ff. for further discussion.</ref> This cause of death is not mentioned in any other source, but it raises the interesting possibility that it was the crippling effects of this unidentified disease that led to Ímar's Old Norse sobriquet [[Ivar the Boneless|Ívarr inn beinlausi]], or Ivar the Boneless.<ref>The Norse sources understood "boneless" to mean that Ivar was impotent, had no legs, or that his limbs were so enfeebled he had to be carried about on a shield.</ref>
According to the [[Chronicle of the Kings of Alba]], Amlaíb died around 874–875 in [[Dollar, Clackmannanshire|Dollar]] during a protracted campaign against [[Causantín mac Cináeda|Constantine I of Scotland]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Pictish Chronicle |url=http://www.mimas.ac.uk/~zzalsaw2/pictish.html |quote=and after two years Amlaib, with his people, laid waste Pictavia; and he dwelt there from 1 January until the feast of Saint Patrick [17 March]. Again in the third [?thirteenth] year Amlaib, while collecting tribute, was killed by Constantine. A short while after that battle was fought in his [Constantine's] 14th [?13th] year at Dollar between the Danes and the Scots, the Scots were annihilated at Atholl. The Norsemen spent a whole year in Pictavia.}} (The interpretation and translation of this passage are still matters of scholarly debate.) According to the Icelandic [http://www.northvegr.org/lore/landnamabok/011.php ''Landnámabók''], Chapter 15, Olaf the White "fell in battle in Ireland".</ref> These deaths ushered in three decades of uncertainty for the Norse settlements in Ireland. Internecine conflict between the different factions weakened the colonies and made it easier for the Irish to unite against them. During this period most of the Norse colonies at [[Dublin]], [[Wexford]], [[Waterford]], [[Cork (city)|Cork]] and [[Limerick]] fell under the sway of native rulers, as the former allies of the Norsemen turned against them. It has even been claimed that Cerball mac Dúnlainge assumed the kingship of Dublin around this time (possibly with the consent of its Norse inhabitants),<ref>The Icelandic [http://www.northvegr.org/lore/landnamabok/003.php ''Landnámabók''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090922020016/http://www.northvegr.org/lore/landnamabok/003.php |date=22 September 2009 }}, Chapter 1, and the [https://books.google.com/books?id=ot4RAAAAYAAJ
==Epigoni==
[[File:Dublindynasty902.png|right|thumb|300px|The Scandinavian dynasty of Dublin.]]
In Dublin Amlaíb was succeeded by one of his sons, Oistin (Eysteinn); but Albdann (Hálfdan), the leader of the Dubgenti and conqueror of Northumbria, also claimed the throne. In 875 Hálfdan invaded the settlement and killed Eysteinn,<ref>According to [[Saxo Grammaticus]]'s [http://www.northvegr.org/lore/saxo/009_05.php ''Gesta Danorum'', Book 9], Dublin was once besieged by two Danish princes, Canute (Knut
[[File:Early Scandinavian Dublin - Strangford.svg|right|thumb]]
Line 89 ⟶ 98:
[[File:Early Scandinavian Dublin - Tirawley.svg|right|thumb]]
In 888 Sichfrith Ivarsson was assassinated by his brother [[Sigtryggr Ivarsson|Sitric I]], who held the throne for five years (888–893).<ref>AU 888.9: "Sichfrith m. Imair, rex Nordmannorum, a fratre suo per dolum occisus est"; CS 888; CGG 27, which calls Sichfrith "Sitriuc"; AClon 888, which calls Sichfrith "Juffrie [Jeffrey] mac Iwer". Todd (1867) identifies this Sitric with the "Lord of the foreigners of Limerick" mentioned by the Four Masters (AFM 938.13), though it is possible that the Lord of Limerick was his son Aralt (Harald). Downham (2007) makes this Harald a son of the later [[Sihtric Cáech|Sitric II]].</ref> During this time the Dubliners were strong enough to carry out successful raids on major monasteries. They plundered Ardbraccan, Donaghpatrick, Dulane, Glendalough, Kildare and Clonard all within the space of two years (890–891).<ref>Ó Corráin (2008), p. 22; CS 891.</ref> But a son of Barith called Eolair was killed by the Uí Amalgada of [[Tír Amhlaidh|Tír Amalgada]] (Tirawley in [[County Mayo]]).<ref>CS 891. ''Tirawley'' is an Anglicisation of ''Tír Amalgada'', "Amalgaid's Land". It is possible that this Eolair was not Barith's son but the son of Járnkné referred to above.</ref>
In 893 another conflict arose and the ruling dynasty in Dublin split into two factions, one led by Sitric and the other by a pretender called [[Sigfrith the Jarl]] ({{lang-on|Sigfrøðr}} or ''Sigurðr''). This shadowy figure may have been the same Sigfrøðr who was [[King of Jorvik|King of Jórvík]] from
In 895 a Norseman called Glúniarann ("Iron Knee", an Irish translation of the Norse Járnkné) led an army from Dublin to Armagh, where 710 prisoners were captured.
Line 103 ⟶ 112:
==The archaeological record==
[[File:Dublin900.svg|right|thumb|300px|Dublin ''c.'' 900.]]
This period of Dublin's history is still very obscure. Despite the existence of a wealth of documentary evidence for Viking activity in the Dublin region throughout the 9th century, relatively little archaeological evidence has been unearthed to corroborate the testimony of contemporary annalists. The pioneering 19th-century historian [[Charles Haliday]] bewailed the silence of contemporary Irish sources "respecting the social position, religion, laws, and monuments of those who occupied Dublin for more than three hundred years on all facts ... excepting such as relate to their inroads and devastations".<ref>Haliday (1884), p. 4.</ref> Most of our knowledge concerning the day-to-day lives of the Norse settlers in Dublin has been learned from extensive excavations at [[Wood Quay]] and in the neighbourhoods of [[Winetavern Street]] and [[Fishamble Street]]. The Norse built their houses almost exclusively out of perishable materials such as wood and straw, but many early buildings have been preserved in this area in a two-metre-thick waterlogged layer of estuarine mud, making Dublin one of the most important Norse sites in Europe. To date, more than two hundred houses have been excavated.
Among the few recent discoveries relating to this period are the graves of five young Viking warriors, one of which was found at Ship Street Great about 100 metres to the southwest of the Black Pool, the other four being clustered together on the southeastern shore near South Great George's Street. Radiocarbon analysis suggests that all five died in the 9th century, possibly before the establishment of a Viking ''longphort'' at Dublin. [[Isotope analysis#Archaeology|Oxygen isotope analysis]] has revealed that two of these warriors were from Scandinavia and two from somewhere in the British Isles, possibly the western coast of Scotland. In total, about one hundred Viking burials from this period have been unearthed in the Dublin region, but most of these discoveries were made serendipitously in the 19th century and few were properly excavated. Most of these burials were accompanied by typical Viking grave goods – swords, spear-heads, shields, daggers, [[penannular brooch]]es and various decorative items – including [[hacksilver]] (i.e. small pieces of silver cut from coins or jewellery and used as currency).<ref>{{cite book |last=Simpson |first=Linzi |editor=Seán Duffy |chapter=Viking Warrior Burials in Dublin: Is This the ''longphort''? |title=Medieval Dublin |volume=VI |pages=11–62 |date=2005 |location=Dublin |isbn=1-85182-885-0}}; {{cite book |last=Daly |first=Cathy |editor=Seán Duffy |chapter=Beyond Valhalla: The Conservation of a Group of Viking Grave-Goods from Dublin |title=Medieval Dublin |volume=VI |pages=63–77 |date=2005 |location=Dublin |isbn=1-85182-885-0}}</ref>
Line 115 ⟶ 124:
To date, no archaeological remains of any ''longphort'' or ''wintersetl'' have been unearthed; nevertheless, the possibility that there was no actual encampment in this early period can be discounted. A wealth of contemporary documentary evidence serves to confirm that throughout the second half of the 9th century Viking Dublin was a successful and thriving settlement from which numerous raids were launched throughout the country. Furthermore, a succession of warlords – many of them claiming the title King of Dublin – made Dublin their principal power-base, and from there launched a series of military campaigns against enemies in Ireland, Britain and further afield.
The most likely possibility is that the ''longphort'' was established on the gravel ridge overlooking the Black Pool – the most easily defended location in Dublin – and that its remains were subsequently buried or obliterated by the later 10th century settlement of Dyflinn, which was built in the same location (not to mention [[Dublin Castle]], which presently occupies the site). The discovery of what are thought to be late 9th-century earthen banks in Ross Road and Werburgh Street (immediately west of Dublin Castle) lends some support to this theory.<ref>{{cite book |last=Walsh |first=Claire |editor=Seán Duffy|chapter=Dublin's southern Defences, Tenth to Fourteenth Centuries: The Evidence from Ross Road |title=Medieval Dublin |volume=II |pages=88–127 |date=2001 |location=Dublin
==Housing==
Line 138 ⟶ 147:
Viking activity in the Dublin region is also indicated by the discovery of numerous silver-hoards in the east and midlands of Ireland.<ref>Downham (2007), p. 23.</ref>
==See also==
* [[History of Dublin]]
* [[History of Dublin to 795]]
==Notes==
Line 146 ⟶ 160:
* {{Cite AI}}
* {{Cite AU1}}
* {{Cite book |author1=Aethelweard |
* {{Cite book |title=The Chronicle of Ireland |last=Charles-Edwards |first=T. M. |
* {{Cite book |title=Irish Historic Towns Atlas, No. 11|last=Clarke |first=H. B. |year=2005 |publisher=Royal Irish Academy |location=Dublin |isbn=1-874045-89-5}}
* {{Cite book |title=Vikings Kings of Britain and Ireland: The Dynasty of Ívarr to A.D. 1014 |last=Downham |first=Clare |year=2007 |publisher=Dunedin |location=Scotland |isbn=978-1-906716-06-6}}
Line 154 ⟶ 168:
* {{Cite book |title=Onomasticon Goedelicum |last=Hogan |first=Edmund |year=1910 |location=Dublin |url=http://publish.ucc.ie/doi/locus}}
* {{Cite book| last=Montgomery |first=Hugh |title=The God-Kings of Europe: The Descendents of Jesus Traced Through the Odonic and Davidic Dynasties |year=2006 |publisher=Book Tree| isbn=978-1-58509-109-6}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Ó Corráin |first=Donnchadh |
* {{Cite web |author=Donnchadh Ó Corráin |
* {{Cite book |title=Cogad Gaedel re Gallaib |last=Todd |first=James Henthorn (trans.) |
* {{Cite journal| last=Smyth |first=Alfred P. |title=The Black Foreigners of York and the White Foreigners of Dublin |journal=Saga-Book |volume=19 |year=1974–1977 |pages=101–117}}
|