Gofraid mac Sitriuc (died 951), in
Old Norse
Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...
Guðrøðr Sigtryggsson , was
King of Dublin. He was the son of
Sihtric ua Ímair and a great-grandson of
Ímar
Ímar ( ; died c. 873) was a powerful Viking leader in Ireland and Scotland in the mid-late ninth century. He was the progenitor of the Uí Ímair dynasty, who would go on to dominate the Irish Sea region for several centuries. He was the son o ...
, founder of the
Uí Ímair
The Uí Ímair (; meaning ‘''scions of Ivar’''), also known as the Ivar dynasty or Ivarids, was a Norse-Gael dynasty which ruled much of the Irish Sea region, the Kingdom of Dublin, the western coast of Scotland, including the Hebrides and ...
kindred which dominated much of the
Norse-Gael and
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
nised parts of
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales
* The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...
and
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 ...
in the 10th century.
Gofraid became ruler 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 ...
on the death of his cousin
Blácaire mac Gofrith in a battle against
Congalach mac Máel Mithig, 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 ...
, in 948. The men of Dublin suffered heavy losses in this battle, over a thousand being killed or captured.
An even bloodier defeat followed in 950 when Gofraid allied with Congalach against the would-be High King
Ruaidrí ua Canannáin. Gofraid attacked Ruaidrí at an unidentified place called ''Móin Brocaín'', somewhere between the
River Boyne
The River Boyne ( or ''Abhainn na Bóinne'') is a river in Leinster, Ireland, the course of which is about long. It rises at Trinity Well, Newberry Hall, near Carbury, County Kildare, and flows north-east through County Meath to reach the ...
and the
River Liffey
The River Liffey (Irish language, Irish: ''An Life'', historically ''An Ruirthe(a)ch'') is a river in eastern Ireland that ultimately flows through the centre of Dublin to its mouth within Dublin Bay. Its major Tributary, tributaries include t ...
, on 30 November 950. Although Ruaidrí and one of his sons were killed in the battle, Gofraid was heavily defeated and fled. 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� ...
'' say that some two thousand of the Dublin force were killed, while other, less reliable
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 ...
claim as many as six thousand. It may be that Congalach betrayed Gofraid, as some sources present him as the victor.
Gofraid's fortunes improved in 951. Raids from Dublin targeted the
Abbey of Kells
The Abbey of Kells () or Kells Priory is a former monastery in Kells, County Meath, Ireland, north-west of Dublin. It was founded in the early 9th century, and the Book of Kells was kept there during the later medieval and early modern perio ...
and other churches in the Irish midlands. The ''Annals of Ulster'' say that from Kells alone "three thousand men or more were taken captive and a great spoil of cattle and horses and gold and silver was taken away". The prisoners would be ransomed or sold into slavery, the cattle would feed Dublin as the city depended on importing mature beasts, and the rest would strengthen the city's defences.
Neither walls nor money nor soldiers were of any protection when, as the annals report, plague appeared in Dublin later in 951. This is described as
leprosy
Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...
and
dysentery
Dysentery ( , ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications may include dehyd ...
. According to the ''
Chronicon Scotorum
''Chronicon Scotorum'', also known as ''Chronicum Scotorum'', is a medieval Irish chronicle.
Overview
According to Nollaig Ó Muraíle, it is "a collection of annals belonging to the ' Clonmacnoise group', covering the period from prehistoric ...
'' Gofraid was among the dead, and his death is reported as divine vengeance for the sacking of Kells.
[Downham, pp. 47 & 254; Hudson, p. 37; ''Annals of Ulster'', s.a. 951; ''Chronicon Scotorum'', s.a. 951; ''Annals of the Four Masters'', s.a. 949.]
Gofraid's brother
Amlaíb Cuarán succeeded him as king in Dublin in 952.
Notes
References
* The ''Annals of Ulster'', ''Annals of the Four Masters'' and the ''Chronicon Scotorum'' are available with translations a
CELT: The Corpus of Electronic Texts(
University College Cork
University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) () is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork (city), Cork.
The university was founded in 1845 as one of three Queen's Universit ...
)
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Gofraid mac Sitriuc
Monarchs of Dublin
951 deaths
Uí Ímair
Year of birth unknown
10th-century Irish monarchs