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Brian Boru: Ard Righ of All Ireland
Brian Boruma mac Cennetig is one of the most revered figures in Irish history.
BRIAN BORU: ARD RIGH OF ALL IRELAND
Brian Boruma mac Cennetig is one of the most revered figures in Irish history. He was born in the 930s, destined to become a mighty warrior. He is credited with driving out the Vikings and is the only king to have ruled over a united Ireland. The man who attained the title of "ard-ri Gaidel Erenn, Gall, Bretan, August iarthair tuascirt Eorpa uile" grew up in turbulent and bloody times. At his birth, the rulership of Munster was in dispute between the northern Dal Cais and the southern Eoghanacht Raithlind. Brian Boru's grandfather, Lorcan mac Lachtan, king of Thomond, fought to sway the balance of power back to the Delcassians. Eventually his son, Cennetig, gained the kingship of Munster. Brian Boruma and Mahoun, Cennetig's two sons, inevitably became embroiled in the ongoing power struggles. The Dal Cais' motto, "first on the battlefield, last to leave", shaped the lives of many men but especially Brian Boru. In 960 Brian Boruma took over his grandfather's throne as King of Thomond, northern Munster. His brother Mahoun became King of Munster. The brothers ruled in harmony until Mahoun started to make peace with the Vikings, motivated by gains offered in trade. Brian Boru, however, could not set aside his childhood memories of his mother and other members of the clan murdered in a Viking raid. He confronted Mahoun for trying to settle with the invaders. Mahoun listened to his brother and changed his mind. He put Brian Boru in charge of the army. This led to the first victory for the future king of all Ireland, foreshadowing Brian Boru's long and brilliant career of military strategy. Before going to war against the Danes of Limerick, he met with chieftains and warriors of both the Dal Cais and the Eoghanists. He selected the best fighters and organized his army accordingly. Amazingly, he brought the two warring clans together to defeat the Vikings. The alliance of Delcassians and Eoghanists was brief. With Mahoun on the throne and Brian Boru leading the armies, the two brothers ruled over all of Munster. Before long, the Eoghanists got restless again and sided with the Danes, plotting to assassinate Mahoun. The King of Munster was lured to visit a distant cousin, a Eoghanist prince named Donovan. It was written that "in violation of the rights of hospitality" Mahoun was murdered in that house by Donovan and another prince, Moalmua. Brian Boru took over as king and moving to Kincora. Then he returned to Donovan's home and retaliated by killing him along with most of his army. Boru's son had his revenge by slaying Moalmu in the same house where Mahoun had been murdered. From there, Brian Boru and his armies swept out to the islands of the Shannon and proceeded to battle the Danes along the coast. Using skillful combinations of land and naval attacks, the islands were once again secured for the Irish. By 984 Boruma received the title of ruler over the entire southern half of Ireland, but he didn't stop there. He continued onward, battling the Danes at Tara, then laying siege to Dublin in the year 999, demonstrating more of his deadly military strategies. Brian Boru used other tactics to secure a position for himself in the northern half of Ireland. He married his daughter to Sitric Silkbeard, the king of Viking Dublin, and wed himself to Sitric's mother, Gormflaith. This forged an important alliance with the Vikings because Gormflaith's ex-husband Mael Sechnaill II (Malachy) had been Boru's enemy for years. This enmity was the last thing standing between Brian Boru and the high kingship of all Ireland. The strategy worked and Malachy submitted to become a vassal under Boruma. In 1002 Brian Boru returned to Tara nd was crowned Ard Righ of Ireland. The nation enjoyed a brief period of peace during which Boru rebuilt many institutions that were destroyed during the wars. But huge tributes were demanded in return for the Ard Righ's protection against invaders. Rebellions provoked quick and bloody responses. Three years after becoming Ard Righ, Boruma marched into Armagh at the head of an army of thousands from Munster, Meath, Leinster, Connacht and Viking Dublin. This was a victory march, since he had twice before been pushed back by the powerful Ulster kings. To immortalize his triumph, he paid the Church 20 ounces of gold to inscribe his name into the Book of Armagh as Imperator Scottorum ("Emperor of the Irish"). In 1006, he paraded around Ulster, staking out his territory. But the stage was being set for his downfall, as armies in Dublin and Leinster again joined forces with the Norse. On Good Friday, 23 April 1014, the Battle of Clontarf (four miles north of modern Dublin) raged from sunrise to sunset. Brian Boru's army, mostly Delcassians and thousands of warriors under nobles from Munster and Connaught was confronted by 21,000 Danes, Norwegian, Leinstermen, and other foreign allies. Too old to fight, Boru stayed in his tent while the battle raged so fiercely that according to one account "the trees wept blood and the nearby River Tolka turned red." Although Brian Boru's armies won the battle, the Ard Righ was slain by a group of Danes who discovered him in his tent as they were retreating. He fought to the very end, killing several of them before he was beheaded by King Brodar of Man. Before Boru died, he dealt one final death blow - to Brodar. Without Brian Boru's powerful leadership, Ireland quickly fell into the chaos of dynastic disputes and political turmoil, never again to be united. |
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