The Kings of Brega were rulers of Brega , a petty kingdom north of Dublin in medieval Ireland.
23-490: Saint Eunan ( / ˈ j uː n ə n / YOO -nən ) may refer to Adomnán , abbot of Iona. The name may also refer to: Adomn%C3%A1n Adomnán or Adamnán of Iona ( Old Irish: [ˈaðəṽˌnaːn] ; Latin : Adamnanus , Adomnanus ; c. 624 – 704), also known as Eunan ( / ˈ j uː n ə n / YOO -nən ; from Naomh Adhamhnán ), was an abbot of Iona Abbey ( r. 679–704), hagiographer , statesman, canon jurist, and saint . He
46-582: A hero in Gaelic mythology. Wetherill suggests that one of the motivations for writing the Vita was to offer Columba as a model for the monks, and thereby improve Adomnán's standing as abbot. The biography is by far the most important surviving work written in early-medieval Scotland, and is a vital source for our knowledge of the Picts, as well as a great insight into the life of Iona and the early-medieval Gaelic monk. However,
69-653: A member of the Northern Uí Néill lineage Cenél Conaill . He was the son of Rónán mac Tinne by Ronat, a woman from another Northern Uí Néill lineage known as the Cenél nÉnda. Adomnán's birthplace was probably in or near Raphoe , a town in what later became Tír Chonaill (now mainly County Donegal ), in Ulster in the north of Ireland . Some of Adomnán's childhood anecdotes seem to confirm at least an upbringing in this fertile eastern part of present-day County Donegal, not far from
92-764: Is joint patron of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Raphoe , which encompasses the bulk of County Donegal in the north-west of Ireland . The Cathedral of St Eunan and St Columba (popularly known as St. Eunan's Cathedral), the Catholic cathedral in that diocese, is in Letterkenny . In 727 the relics of Adomnán were brought to Ireland to renew the Cáin Adomnáin and they were returned to Iona in 730. In his native Donegal, Adomnán has given his name to several institutions and buildings including: In County Sligo , just to
115-521: Is not accepted by all scholars, it remains a strong possibility. In 679, Adomnán became the ninth abbot of Iona after Columba. Abbot Adomnán enjoyed a friendship with King Aldfrith of Northumbria . In 684, Aldfrith had been staying with Adomnán in Iona. In 686, after the death of Aldfrith's brother King Ecgfrith of Northumbria and Aldfrith's succession to the kingship, Adomnán was in the Kingdom of Northumbria on
138-673: The Hill of Tara , the site where the High King of Ireland was proclaimed. Brega was bounded on the east by the Irish Sea and on the south by the River Liffey . It extended northwards across the River Boyne to include Sliabh Breagha the line of hills in southern County Louth . The western boundary, which separated it from the Kingdom of Mide , was probably quite fluid and is not accurately known. Brega
161-517: The Laighin . Donnchad Ua Cerbaill of Airgíalla , the half-brother of Ua Ruairc, took Árd Ciannachta and consolidated his position by donating land from it for Mellifont Abbey . List incomplete: see Mac Shamhráin, 2004. The Uí Chonaing had earlier been settled around Tailtiu and Ráith Airthir in the valley of the Blackwater; that district was left to another branch of Síl nÁeda Sláne, Síl nDlúthaig upon
184-498: The Vita was not his only work. Adomnán also wrote the treatise De Locis Sanctis (i.e. "On Holy Places"), an account of the great Christian holy places and centres of pilgrimage. Adomnán got much of his information from a Frankish bishop called Arculf , who had personally visited the Egypt , Rome , Constantinople and the Holy Land , and visited Iona afterwards. Adomnán gave a copy to
207-661: The conquest of the Ciannachta Breg during the reign of Cináed mac Írgalaig. The title King of Ciannachta is first used by this dynasty in the Annals of Ulster in the year 742 and the use of the title King of Cnogba in 818; prior to this, it was a title used by the Ciannachta themselves. Earlier kings can be considered chiefs of the Uí Chonaing. List incomplete: see Mac Shamhráin, 2004. The title King of Southern Brega does not appear in
230-592: The influence of Abbot Ceolfrith , that Adomnán decided to adopt the Roman dating of Easter that had been agreed some years before at the Synod of Whitby . Bede implies that this led to a schism at Iona, whereby Adomnán became alienated from the Iona brethren and went to Ireland to convince the Irish of the Roman dating. Jeffrey Wetherill sees Adomnán's long absences from Iona as having led to something of an undermining of his authority; he
253-562: The king and scolded him soundly for yielding the rights of the Uí Néill. It is generally believed that in 697, Adomnán promulgated the Cáin Adomnáin , meaning literally the "Canons" or "Law of Adomnán". The Cáin Adomnáin was promulgated amongst a gathering of Irish , Dál Riatan and Pictish notables at the Synod of Birr in 697. It is a set of laws designed, among other things, to guarantee
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#1732851255958276-505: The kingdom's extinction in the early years of the Norman invasion of Ireland . In later centuries Brega was threatened by the rise of the Viking Kingdom of Dublin and came under the suzerainty of the kings of Mide . In the divisions of that kingdom in the twelfth century parts of Brega, or East Mide , came under the control of Tigernán Ua Ruairc of Breifne and Diarmaid mac Murchadha of
299-550: The modern city of Derry . It is thought that Adomnán may have begun his monastic career at a Columban monastery called Druim Tuamma, but any Columban foundation in northern Ireland or Dál Riata is a possibility, although Durrow is a stronger possibility than most. He probably joined the Columban familia (i.e. the federation of monasteries under the leadership of Iona Abbey ) around the year 640. Some modern commentators believe that he could not have come to Iona until sometime after
322-474: The request of King Fínsnechta Fledach of Brega in order to gain the freedom of sixty Gaels who had been captured in a Northumbrian raid two years before. Adomnán, in keeping with Ionan tradition, made several more trips to the lands of the English during his abbacy, including one the following year. It is sometimes thought, after the account given by Bede , that it was during his visits to Northumbria, under
345-727: The safety and immunity of various types of non-combatants in warfare. For this reason it is also known as the Lex Innocentium (Law of Innocents). Adomnán's most important work, and the one for which he is best known, is the Vita Columbae ("Life of Columba"), a hagiography of Iona 's founder, Columba , probably written between 697 and 700. The format borrows to some extent from Sulpicius Severus ' Life of Saint Martin of Tours . Adomnán adapted traditional forms of Christian biography to group stories about Columba thematically rather than chronologically, and present Columba as comparable to
368-705: The scholar-king Aldfrith of Northumbria (685–704). Also attributed to him is a good deal of Gaelic poetry, including a celebration of the Pictish King Bridei 's (671–93) victory over the Northumbrians at the Battle of Dun Nechtain (685). Adomnán died in 704, and became a saint in Scottish and Irish tradition, as well as one of the most important figures in either Scottish or Irish history. His death and feast day are commemorated on 23 September. Along with Columba , he
391-586: The south, he is venerated as the founder of Skreen Abbey, now the site of the Church of Ireland church of Skreen Parish. Kings of Brega Brega took its name from Magh Breagh ( Breá ), meaning "fine plain", in modern County Meath , County Louth and County Dublin , Ireland. They formed part of the Uí Néill kindred, belonging to the Síl nÁedo Sláine branch of the southern Uí Néill. The kingdom of Brega included
414-400: The treatise De Locis Sanctis ('On Holy Places'), an account of the great Christian holy places and centres of pilgrimage. Adomnán got much of his information from a Frankish bishop called Arculf , who had personally visited Egypt , Rome , Constantinople and the Holy Land , and visited Iona afterwards. Adomnán was born about 624, a relative on his father's side of Columba. He was
437-468: The year 669, the year of the accession of Fáilbe mac Pípáin , the first abbot of whom Adomnán gives any information. However, Richard Sharpe argues that he probably came to Iona during the abbacy of Ségéne (d. 652). Whenever or wherever Adomnán received his education, Adomnán attained a level of learning rare in early-medieval Northern Europe. It has been suggested by Alfred Smyth that Adomnán spent some years teaching and studying at Durrow, and while this
460-611: Was annexed in the 6th century by the Uí Néill. By the middle of the 8th century the Síl nÁedo Sláine had split into two hostile branches: Southern Brega, or the Kingdom of Loch Gabhair , which was ruled by the Uí Chernaig ; and Northern Brega, or the Kingdom of Cnogba/Knowth , which was ruled by the Uí Chonaing . Despite this, many kings of Brega ruled over both areas, and thus Brega as a whole, until
483-463: Was prepared to go to war over the payment, but first sent a delegation led by Saint Moling to ask for its remittance. Fínsnechta Fledach agreed to remit payment "for a day and a night". Moling argued that "All time is day and night; thou canst never reimpose this tax." Although this was not the king's intention, Moling held him to his word, promising him heaven if he kept it, and the reverse if he did not. When Adomnán learned of this he left Iona to see
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#1732851255958506-585: Was the author of the Life of Columba ( Latin : Vita Columbae ), probably written between 697 and 700. This biography is by far the most important surviving work written in early-medieval Scotland, and is a vital source for our knowledge of the Picts , and an insight into the life of Iona and the early-medieval Gaelic monk. Adomnán promulgated the Law of Adomnán or "Law of Innocents" ( Latin : Lex Innocentium ). He also wrote
529-547: Was thus unable to persuade the monks to adopt the Roman dating of Easter, let alone the tonsure. It is clear that Adomnán did adopt that Roman dating and, moreover, probably did argue the case for it in Ireland. For many years, the people of Leinster made a triennial tribute payment, called the Borumha , to the Uí Néill. The payment was made largely in cattle. Around 692, the King of Leinster
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