Dunadd (

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

''Dún Ad'', "fort on the

iver Iver is a civil parishes in England, civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. In addition to the central nucleated village, clustered village, the parish includes the residential neighbourhoods of Iver Heath and Richings Park and the hamlets o ...

Add",

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic (, Ogham, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ; ; or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic languages, Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive written texts. It was used from 600 to 900. The ...

''Dún Att'') is a

hillfort A hillfort is a type of fortification, fortified refuge or defended settlement located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typical of the late Bronze Age Europe, European Bronze Age and Iron Age Europe, Iron Age. So ...

Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute (; , ) is one of 32 unitary authority, unitary council areas of Scotland, council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, dating from the

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

and

early medieval The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Middle Ages of Europ ...

period and is believed to be the capital of the ancient kingdom of

Dál Riata Dál Riata or Dál Riada (also Dalriada) () was a Gaels, Gaelic Monarchy, kingdom that encompassed the Inner Hebrides, western seaboard of Scotland and north-eastern Ireland, on each side of the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North ...

. Dal Riata was a Gaelic kingdom spanning the northern Irish coast to Argyll and the Scottish islands in the early centuries AD, possibly after the Romans had abandoned Southern Britain and at the time when the Anglo-Saxons were crossing the North Sea to counter incursions over

Hadrian's Wall Hadrian's Wall (, also known as the ''Roman Wall'', Picts' Wall, or ''Vallum Aelium'' in Latin) is a former defensive fortification of the Roman province of Roman Britain, Britannia, begun in AD 122 in the reign of the Emperor Hadrian. Ru ...

by the

Picts The Picts were a group of peoples in what is now Scotland north of the Firth of Forth, in the Scotland in the early Middle Ages, Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and details of their culture can be gleaned from early medieval texts and Pic ...

and Dalriadan Scots.

Description

Dunadd is a rocky crag that may have been one time an island and now lies inland near the River Add, from which it takes its name, a little north of Lochgilphead (NR 836 936). The surrounding land, now largely reclaimed, was formerly boggy and known as the ''Mòine Mhòr'' ("Great Moor") in Gaelic. This no doubt increased the defensive potential of the site.Alan Lane and Ewan Campbell, ''Dunadd: An early Dalriadic capital'' (Oxbow Books, Oxford, 2000). Detailed analysis of sea-level changes in the region argue that the Dun was an island or promontory into historic times, and that receding sea levels left the fortification open to siege and seizure in the 6th to 7th centuries.

History

Originally occupied in the

, the site later became a seat of the kings of

. It is known for its unique stone carvings below the upper enclosure, including a footprint and basin thought to have formed part of

coronation A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...

ritual. On the same flat outcrop of rock is an incised boar in Pictish style, and an inscription in the ogham script. The inscription is read as referring to a ''Finn Manach'' and is dated to the late 8th century or after. Dunadd is mentioned twice in early sources. In 683 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� ...

'' record: "The siege of Dún At and the siege of Dún Duirn" without further comment on the outcome or participants. In the same chronicle the entry for 736 states: " Aengus son of Fergus, king of the Picts, laid waste the territory of Dál Riata and seized Dún At and burned Creic and bound in chains two sons of Selbach, i.e. Donngal and Feradach." The site was occupied after 736, at least into the 9th century. It is mentioned twice in later sources, suggesting that it retained some importance. In 1436, it is recorded that "Alan son of John Riabhach MacLachlan of Dunadd" was made

seneschal The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...

of the lands of Glassary; the chief place of residence of the MacLachlans of Dunadd lay below the fort. In June 1506, commissioners appointed by James IV, including the earl and bishop of Argyll, met at Dunadd to collect rents and resolve feuds. The site is an

Ancient Monument An ancient monument can refer to any early or historical manmade structure or architecture. Certain ancient monuments are of cultural importance for nations and become symbols of international recognition, including the Baalbek, ruins of Baalbek ...

, under the care of Historic Scotland, and is open to the public (open all year; no entrance charge).

Excavations

Because Dunadd is mentioned in early sources, and is readily identifiable, it has been excavated on several occasions (1904–1905, 1929, and 1980) and has one of the most important ensembles of finds from any early medieval site in

. Finds range from the 6th to the 8th centuries AD. These include tools, weapons, quernstones, imported pottery and motif-pieces and moulds for the manufacture of fine metalwork (especially jewellery).

Bruach An Druimein connection

Seven kilometres to the north of Dunadd is the site of Bruach An Druimein. Excavated in the 1960s in advance of gravel quarrying, archaeologists discovered the remains of a Bronze Age cists cemetery, two round houses from the

, and a number of artefacts from the early medieval period that were contemporary with Dunadd. Two medieval glass beads were found that have similar chemical compositions to those found at Dunadd, leading the archaeologists to believe that the beads came from Dunadd and that the site was associated with, or controlled by Dunadd.

In fiction

In Rosemary Sutcliff's 1965 novel '' The Mark of the Horse Lord'' the Dal Riada undergo an internal struggle for control of royal succession, with Dun Monaidh central to the conflict, including a depiction of royal coronation and use of carved footprint. Dunadd is the location for Claire R. McDougall's novel
Veil of Time
" in which a modern-day woman is transported back to Dunadd's heyday in the 8th century. All the features of Dunadd, including the footprint, the boar, the well and the tumble down ruins are features of the story, as are the modern farm and cottages . Other ancient sites in the Kilmartin Valley also play a part in the narrative.

Files

File:The Footprint of Fealty, Dunadd Fort - geograph.org.uk - 940508.jpg, Footprint of Fealty File:Dunadd Fort Basin and Footprint.png, Dunadd Fort Basin and Footprint, in Kilmichael Glassary in Argyll and Bute, Scotland File:ViewFromDunadd2-HypeNapungra.jpg, A View Of The River From The Summit Of Dunadd File:Dunadd Fort Climb.jpg, Extended view reverse of climb to top of Dunadd Fort File:ViewFromDunadd1-Scotland-HypeNapungra.jpg, A View From Atop Dunadd File:Scotland Dunadd.jpg, Dunadd Hillfort - A View From The Summit File:Dunadd-Hillfort-DescriptiveAndMap.jpg, On site Descriptive Sign and Map File:Dunadd-Hillfort-CarvedPathway.JPG, Pathway carved through rocks near summit File:Dunadd-Hillfort-MidlevelApproach.JPG, Mid-level approach up steep slope

Notes

External links

Three Dimensional Modelling of Scottish Early Medieval Sculpted StonesArchaeology Data Service
AVI, QuickTime and VRML format images of Dunadd and the surrounds.
The Kingdom of the Gaels
BBC Scotland - Scotland's History
Brief history with photos with respect to the Siol Alpin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunadd Archaeological sites in Argyll and Bute Hill forts in Scotland Landforms of Argyll and Bute Historic Environment Scotland properties in Argyll and Bute Former populated places in Scotland Former islands of Scotland Iron Age sites in Scotland Scheduled monuments in Argyll and Bute Scotland in the Early Middle Ages Cliffs of Scotland Legendary footprints