Finguine Fota (died 689) or Finguine son of Eochaid was king of

Cowal Cowal () is a rugged peninsula in Argyll and Bute, on the west coast of Scotland. It is connected to the mainland to the north, and is bounded by Loch Fyne to the west, by Loch Long and the Firth of Clyde to the east, and by the Kyles of Bute ...

in modern-day

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 ...

, and a member of the Gaelic

Cenél Comgaill Comgall mac Domangairt was king of Dál Riata in the early 6th century. He was the son of Domangart Réti and grandson of Fergus Mór. The ''Annals of Ulster'' report his death in 538, 542 and 545, the ''Annals of Tigernach'' in 537. Comgall ...

kindred.

Life

Finguine was the great-grandson of

Conall mac Comgaill Conall mac Comgaill was king of Dál Riata from about 558 until 574. He was a son of Comgall mac Domangairt. It is said that he gave Iona to Saint Columba. The Duan Albanach says that he reigned "without dissension", but there is a report of an ...

, and the father of Dargart mac Finguine, who was in turn the father of Bridei son of Der-Ilei and Naiton son of Der-Ilei, both 8th-century kings of

Fortriu Fortriu (; ; ; ) was a Pictish kingdom recorded between the 4th and 10th centuries. It was traditionally believed to be located in and around Strathearn in central Scotland, but is more likely to have been based in the north, in the Moray and ...

and of 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 ...

. Finguine may after 671 have formed a three-way alliance with

Bridei son of Beli Bridei son of Beli, died 692 was king of Fortriu and of the Picts from 671 until 692. His reign marks the start of the period known to historians as the Verturian hegemony, a turning point in the history of Scotland, when the uniting of Picti ...

, king of Pictish

, and Bridei's nephew Eugein, who was king of the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

kingdom of

Alt Clut Dumbarton Castle (, ; ) has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Scotland. It sits on a volcanic plug of basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high and overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton. History Dumbarton Rock was forme ...

. This coalition may have been behind the siege of

Dunadd Dunadd (Scottish Gaelic ''Dún Ad'', "fort on the iverAdd", Old Irish ''Dún Att'') is a hillfort in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, dating from the Iron Age and early medieval period and is believed to be the capital of the ancient kingdom of Dál R ...

in 682, that saw Finguine eclipse

Máel Dúin mac Conaill Máel Dúin mac Conaill (died 688) was a king in Dál Riata (modern western Scotland). He was the son of Conall Crandomna. His death is reported by the Annals of Ulster, but without mention of a title. He is among the kings named by the Duan Alban ...

Cenél nGabráin The Cenél nGabráin was a kin group, presumed to descend from Gabrán mac Domangairt, which dominated the kingship of Dál Riata until the late 7th century and continued to provide kings thereafter. Kings of kingdom of Alba, Alba and of Scotland ...

. Finguine's death is reported in 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� ...

''. He was the last significant dynastic figure of Cenél Comgaill, though it remained prominent in Argyll politics over the following generation, probably because of the influence of Finguine's grandchildren as kings of Fortriu.

References

Bibliography

* * {{cite book , last=Fraser , first=James E. , year=2009 , title=From Caledonia to Pictland: Scotland to 795 , publisher=Edinburgh University Press , location=Edinburgh , isbn=9780748612321 Mael Duin Kings of Dál Riata 7th-century Scottish monarchs Year of birth unknown