Domnall mac Lorcáin (died 984), called Dómnall Claen or Domnall Clóen (Domnall the Squinting), was king of Leinster, the south-eastern province of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. Domnall was a son of Lorcán mac Fáelán and belonged to the Uí Dúnchada branch of the Uí Dúnlainge dynasty which dominated

Leinster Leinster ( ; or ) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in the southeast of Ireland. The modern province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige, which existed during Gaelic Ireland. Following the 12th-century ...

from the 8th to the early 11th century. Domnall became king in 978 following the death of Úgaire mac Túathail of the Uí Muiredaig branch of the dynasty in battle at Belan, in modern

County Kildare County Kildare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the Local gove ...

, fighting against the Norse-Gaels of

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. Domnall had earlier come to the attention of the

Irish annals A number of Irish annals, of which the earliest was the Chronicle of Ireland, were compiled up to and shortly after the end of the 17th century. Annals were originally a means by which monks determined the yearly chronology of feast days. Over ti ...

when, in 972, he had murdered the then-king of Leinster, Murchad mac Finn of the third, Uí Fháeláin, branch of Uí Dúnlainge. The killing had been done "deceitfully" according to the ''

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' () are annals of History of Ireland, medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luin� ...

''. In 979, Domnall was captured in unknown circumstances by the Dubliners. Hudson suggests that this may have been in the nature of a personal vendetta by the Dublin king, Amlaíb Cuarán, son-in-law of that Murchad mac Finn killed by Domnall in 972. He was freed in 980 following the defeat of the Dubliners by

Máel Sechnaill mac Domnaill Máel Sechnaill mac Domnaill (), also called Máel Sechnaill Mór or Máel Sechnaill II (949 – 2 September 1022), was a King of Mide and High King of Ireland. His great victory at the Battle of Tara against Olaf Cuaran in 980 resulted i ...

, the

High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and was later sometimes assigned anachronously or to leg ...

. Three years later Domnall was allied with

Ivar of Waterford Ivar of Waterford (; ; died 1000) was the Norse king of Waterford from at least 969 until his death in the year 1000, and also reigned as King of Dublin, possibly from 989 to 993, and certainly again for less than a year between 994 and 995, r ...

against Máel Sechnaill and the new king of Dublin, Máel Sechnaill's half-brother

Glúniairn Glúniairn (died 989), in Old Norse Járnkné (, Irish for "Iron-knee"), was a Norse-Gael king of Dublin of the Uí Ímair kindred which ruled over much of the Scandinavianised and Norse-Gael parts of Great Britain and Ireland in the tenth centu ...

. Domnall and Ivar were routed in battle and Máel Sechnaill ravaged Leinster. The following year, 984, Domnall was killed by the Uí Cheinnselaig of southern Leinster, Uí Dúnlainge's chief rivals within the province. The ''

Annals of Tigernach The ''Annals of Tigernach'' (Abbreviation, abbr. AT, ) are chronicles probably originating in Clonmacnoise, Ireland. The language is a mixture of Latin language, Latin and Old Irish, Old and Middle Irish. Many of the pre-historic entries come f ...

'' add that Áed son of Echtigern was responsible. Domnall was succeeded as king of Leinster by a son, Donnchad.Byrne, ''Irish Kings'', p. 289, table 9; ''Annals of Ulster'', AU 984.3; ''Annals of Tigernach'', AT 984.1. Uí Cheinnselaig replaced Uí Dúnlainge as the ruling dynasty in Leinster during the 11th century; Byrne, ''Irish Kings'', pp. 271–272. Domnall's killer came to a violent end. Áed mac Echitgern was killed by a rival, Donnchad Máel na mBó, inside the church at

Ferns, County Wexford Ferns (, short for ) is a historic town in north County Wexford, Ireland. It is north of Enniscorthy. The remains of Ferns Castle are in the centre of the town. The town is in a civil parish of the same name. History Ferns is believed to hav ...

; ''Annals of Tigernach'', AT 1003.4.

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References

* * * * * * 10th-century births 10th-century deaths 984 deaths 10th-century kings of Leinster {{Ireland-royal-stub