Saint Columba, Cineal Conaill

A Kind Von Mir (child of mine) is a descendant of St. Columba, Cineal Conaill, the Tyrconell branch of Niall of the Nine Hostages (438 AD).

From the Gollaher Family Foundation:
St. Columba (Columbcille in Gaelic, meaning “dove of the church”). Grandson of Niall of the Nine Hostages. Apostle of the Northern Picts, born. 7 Dec. 521 in Co. Donegal, he spent his formative years not among his family but with his foster father, the holy man Cruithnechan, in Leinster. Founded the church of Derry (now Londonderry) 545, and many other monastic churches, also the monastery of Durrow 553, caused a war in which his kinsmen the Northern Ui Neill defeated the King of Ireland (Diarmaid, head of the Southern Ui Neill) 561, went into voluntary exile, founded the Abby of Iona 563, converted Bruide, King of the Picts; inaugurated his own cousin Aidan as King of the Scots of Dalriada 574, and died June 9, 597.

Revered second only to St. Patrick Columba left an incredible theological mark across Ireland and Scotland. The young Columba spent some time at the monastery in Moville, Ireland. Intrigued by the plentiful books there, he began to make a copy of one of the psalters but was caught in the act by the abbot, who considered this akin to stealing the actual book, and he appealed to King Diarmaid for judgment. In what was probably the world’s first copyright lawsuit, the king decided the case in favor of the abbot, saying “as the calf is to the cow, so the copy is to the book.” Infuriated at this ruling, Columba followed a decidedly unsaintly course. He rallied his kinsmen and engaged the king’s army in a battle in which more than 3,000 men were killed.

Brought before the religious and royal authorities to face punishment for his instigation of the conflict, but miraculously managed to escape serious penalty. At the church trial, he reportedly was preceded into the room by a column of white light, a portent that the church elders determined to be a sign from above. Not wanting to defy a divine omen, they decided not to excommunicate him. When brought before the royal court in the year 563, the king also showed leniency and did not have him executed, but instead exiled him. Remorseful for causing so many deaths, Columba solemnly vowed to the Irish leaders that he would convert one person for each one that had died during the battle, and went on to found the famous Abby of Iona and become the most beloved saint of all Scotland.

In 575 Columba returned to Ireland on a peace-keeping mission, and while there defended the rights of the non-Christian bardic poets against Aed, son of King Ainmere, who had ordered their banishment.

Conal Ghulban
First son of Niall of the Nine Hostages, Conall Ghulban, King of Tír Chonaill or the “Land of Conall” (Tyrconnell or Tirconnell in anglicized English), the lands to the west of Aileach, which was his share of the family’s conquests in north-western Ulster after 425. His descendants, known as the Cenél Conaill, formed one of the principle branches of the Northern Uí Néill, and until the 12th century their kings were inaugurated at the sacrifice of a white mare, going down on all fours like a stallion and lapping its broth. As the kindred of St. Columbia, members of this branch were also Abbots of Iona 563-891 or later, Abbots of Dunkeld from the 9th to 12th centuries, and Kings of Scots from Duncan I (slain by MacBeth 1040) to Alexander III (died of a fall from his horse 1285/86).

Rognvald I Eysteinsson Earl of More and Romsdal

Kind Von Mir (child of mine) is a descendant of Rognvald I.

Rognvald I “The Wise” Eysteinsson Earl of More and Romsdal (830 AD – 890AD)

Rognvald was the son of Eystein Glumra Ivarsson Earl Of Upland and Ascrida Aseda Rognvaldsdatter Countess Of Oppland. He was born in Norway and died in Scotland.

With his wife, Rognvald Eysteinsson Concubine #2 Of Orkney, they had at least one son, Einar Turf Rognvaldsson Earl Of Orkney.

The Wise’s father was Eystein (The Noisy, Glumra) Ivarsson and his mother was Ascrida (Aseda) Rognvaldsdottir. His paternal grandparents were Jarl of Upland Ivar Oplaendinge Halfdansson and Hilda Eysteinsdottir. His one known maternal grandparent was Rognvald Olafsson. He had a brother and a sister, named Malahule and Svanhilda. He was the second oldest of the three children. He died at the age of 38 in 890 on the Isle Of Orkney, Scotland.

NOTE 1
Rogenwald was a supporter of King Harold Harfagr and assisted him in obtaining the mastery over the other independent Norwegian chiefs, as well as, establishing himself as King of all Norway. He was Earl of More and Raumdahl in Norway. In 888, he obtained from King Harold a grant of the Orkney and Shetland islands. One of his sons, Rollo, conquered Neustria, founded the line of sovereign Dukes of Normandy, and was ancestor to William the Conqueror.

NOTE 2
RAGNVALD I the Wise, called the Morejarl, son of Eystein Glumra, Jarl of the Uplanders in Norway, grandson of Ivar son of Halfdan the Old, was made Jarl of North and South More and of Raumsdal in Norway by King Harald Haarfagri after his victory of Solskiel circa 869 over Hunthiof, King of More, and Nokve, King of Raumsdal. In that year, he surprised Vermund, King of Fiordeland, at Notsdal and burned him in his hall with 90 men. Later King Harald married his sister Swanhilda and had issue. Around 874, King Harald made an expedition to the Nordreys (Orkney and Shetland) to enforce his authority over those who had fled thither in order to escape from it in Norway. Either during this expedition or previously at the battle of Hafrsfiord circa 872, Ivar, the eldest son of Ragnvald, was killed and the King gave the Orkneys and Shetlands to Ragnvald as compensation. When the King started home for Norway, during the spring of 875, Ragnvald, who went with him, gave the islands to his brother Sigurd, and the King confirmed the transfer. Ragnvald was surprised in his hall and burned alive circa 894 by Halfdan Haaleg and Gudred Liomi, King Harald’s sons by Snaefrid, dau. of Swasi.

By his wife Ragnhild, dau. of Hrolf Nefia, he had 3 sons: Ivar, who was killed in battle ut supra, Rolf the Ganger, afterwards 1st Duke of Normandy, and Thori the Silent, who was made Jarl of More in succession to his father by Ring Harald Haarfagri circa 894, after Gudred Liomi, who had seized More on the death of Jarl Ragnvald, had been dispossessed by the King. By an earlier union with a nameless girl, whose kindred were all slave-born, Ragnvald had 3 sons, described as bastards: Hallad, 4th Earl of Orkney, Turf-Einar, 5th Earl of Orkney, and Hrollaug, an unwarlike man, who settled at Eyiafiord in Iceland and had issue.

He was burned alive with his bodyguards.

* Notes from the Skaggs Files.

King Duncan I Of Scotland

Kind Von Mir (child of mine) is a descendant of King Duncan I.

Donnchad mac Crínáin was crowned King Duncan I Of Scotland (died 14 August 1040). He was son of Crínán, hereditary lay abbot of Dunkeld, and Bethóc, daughter of King Malcolm II of Scotland.

Unlike the “King Duncan” of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the historical Duncan was likely a young man. He followed his grandfather Malcolm as King after Malcom’s death on 25 November 1034.

Duncan had at least two sons. The eldest, Malcolm III (Máel Coluim mac Donnchada), was king from 1057 – 1093. The second, Donald III (Domnall Bán, or “Donalbane”), was king after Malcom III’s death.

Macbeth (Mac Bethad mac Findláich) was his dux (duke).

In 1039, Duncan led a large Scot’s army south to seize Durham. The expedition ended in failure; however, Duncan survived. The following year he led his army north to Moray — Macbeth’s domain. There he was killed, at Pitgaveny near Elgin, by his own men that were being led by Macbeth (on 14 August 1040.)

Shakespeare’s Macbeth: Act IV. Scene I
Shakespeare’s Macbeth: Act V. Scene III

Somerland ‘King of the Isles’ and Clan Ranald Donald

Kind Von Mir (child of mine) is a descendant of the MacDonald Clan, Somerland, Ranald and Donald:

Somerlead

Somerled and his father Gillebride set out from Donegal Bay around 1120A.D. with a company of Fermanagh fighting men, to re-conquer the lands in Scotland from which they had been driven by the Norsemen. They would have carried pokes of barley, kegs of butter as rations, spears, swords, leather shields for fighting and great woolen war (cloaks to keep out the rain). They weighed anchor and rowed swiftly out to sea. As they did a full turn to starboard round a rocky headland the great tanned mainsail was hoisted and a course heading north towards the bloody foreland was plotted.

In the 12th century the Norse hold on the Hebrides began to weaken, their sway had lasted 400 years. This was comparable to the British, Roman and Ottoman empires which had lasted for similar periods.

The collapse of the Vikings (Norse) was accelerated by the rise of Somerled, an Ulster – Scots warrior with the ability of a Genghis Khan. After minor victories over the Norse on land, Somerled managed to crush a fleet of 80 long ships at Epihpany in 1156.

Not much detail has survived regarding Somerled himself. Whether it was personal skill as a commander or technical superiority at sea, he was always victorious. Within two years of the Epiphany fight he was strong enough to assume the title ‘King of the Isles’. The year 1158 might be said to be the start of the Gaelic kingdom of the isles which was also to last 400 years.

Although varied in extent the claim generally spanned some 25,000 square miles and 500 islands. It stretched over 200 miles south from Cape Wrath and for a brief time included the Isle of Man. The population was, like now, around 40,000 and the kingdom was guarded by some 50 castles perched on the rocks overlooking its waterways. It is perhaps through these sentinels that the ancient empire is remembered. They tell the visitor of the age and power of the lost dominion. The castle’s strength enables us to see the lordship and modern islemen as part of a continuous story. It was not until 1990 that another part of the story was re-created in an example of Somerled’s personal invention, the Highland Galley.

As Somerled prepared to fight king Malcolm of Scotland in 1164 he was assassinated on the field of battle.

Ranald, Somerled’s successor as king, was a relatively peaceful man who ruled the isles from Islay for 43 years. Ranald led galley fleets often to Ireland, founded the Benedictine nunnery on Iona and endowed the monastery at Saddel. The strong religious streak was apparent in even the wildest of the chiefs and none was wilder than the next.

Donald, Somerled’s grandson, and from whom the Clan Donald takes its name, was a sailor and warrior of note. Two years after accession he laid waste to Inishowen in Donegal with 87 ships. Back home he killed Sir William Rollock, the then King of Scotland’s emissary. Donald preferred to align his lands with the King of Norway. He found the Norse court easier of access by galley oversea than the mainland Scottish, accessible only by horse across the mountains. This allegiance combined the temporal with the spiritual, for at this time the Isles were still in the diocese of Trondheim. It took several generations after Somerled for the Norse element in the isles to become less prominent than the Gaelic.

Donald took a fleet to Ireland again and challenged the Norman colony so successfully that he was offered the high kingship of the Gaels, however this he refused. Instead Donald made his peace with the increasingly powerful Norman element in the Scottish court by marrying a daughter of Walter III, high steward of Scotland. She lived on Islay and became the mother of the MacDonalds. Donald took holy orders in his latter days and added handsomely to the endowments of Saddel.

Angus Mor, Donald’s son, continued to support Norway but found this alliance shaken when in 1263 King Haakon was defeated and his fleet wrecked by the skilled maneuvers of King Alexander III at Largs on the Clyde. Three years later the Norwegians ceded the isles to the Scottish crown. Angus then made his peace with Alexander and ruled for a further 51 years.

Clanranald Past, Present and Future

Carved on a broken cross shaft found on the island of Texa off Islay is probably the oldest surviving likeness of a MacDonald. It depicts a typical 14th Century prince, wearing a quilted coat with chain mail and a conical helmet, armed with a great sword and battle axe. This cross shaft is the Cross of Ranald, son of John of Islay and Lord of the Isles.

John of Islay inherited lands between the Great Glen and the Outer Hebrides through his marriage to Amy MacRuari, the heiress to the great Lordship of Garmoran.

There now seems little doubt that Ranald, heir to the chiefship of Clan Donald, was the second and the eldest surviving son of John and Amy. The succession however did not pass to him, but to his younger half brother whose mother was a daughter of Robert II and a Stuart princess.

Confirmed by Robert II in 1373, Ranald received a charter from his father, accounting for the greater part of the MacRuari inheritance and including land in the districts of Moydart, Arisaig and Lochhaber.

Ranald had five sons, including the eldest Allan who succeeded as Chief of Clanranald and Donald, and who founded the line of Glengarry. Allan MacRanald died at his castle of Tioram in 1419 and was succeeded by his son Roderick, who was a staunch supporter of the Lord of the Isles. Roderick was believed to have died in 1481 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Allan.

Allan was a capable and war-like chief, he led a raid into Lochaber and Badenoch in 1491, which culminated in the capture of Inverness Castle. Clanranald appears to have adjusted to the realities of royal power, and on the first visit of James IV to the highlands Allan MacRuari was one of the few chiefs to render him homage.