The organisation and operation of Uí Neill kingship in the Irish midlands : Clann Cholmáin c.550-916

Abstract

This study traces the fortunes of the midland Uí Néill dynasty Clann Cholmáin from the period of our earliest documentary sources, about the mid-sixth century, until the death of the early tenth certury king Fiann Sinna. It is firstly argued that a recent suggestion that the dynasty's eponymous founder, Colmán Már, represents an eighth century genealogical contrivance is seriously flawed. This study then goes on to further highlight the organised, hierarchical but flexible system of kingship operated by Clann Cholmáin in the midlands. It is argued that deputyship was an important organising principle, as suggested by the use of the title 'king of Mide' and other lesser local kingships. It is also shown that Clann Cholmáin and the system of kningship they operated in Mide can be fitted into existing models on how kingship was organised among the wider Uí Néill grouping.