Gormflaith ingen Flann Sinna (c. 870–948) was an Irish

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

of Tara,

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

, and

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 ...

Family background

Gormflaith was the daughter of Flann Sinna,

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 ...

from 879 to 916. Her mother was Gormlaith ingen Flann mac Conaing of

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. Her known siblings were: *

Donnchad Donn Donnchad Donn mac Flainn (''Duncan of the Brown Hair, son of Flann'') (died 944) was High King of Ireland and King of Mide. He belonged to Clann Cholmáin, a branch of the southern Uí Néill. Origins Donnchad was the son of High King Flann ...

, her full sibling. * Óengus mac Flann Sinna, died 915. * Máel Ruanaid mac Flann Sinna, killed in 901 * Donnell mac Flann Sinna, King of Mide 919–921. * Lígach ingen Flann Sinna, died 923. * Conchobar mac Flann Sinna, king of Mide 916–919. * Áed mac Flann Sinna, blinded on Donnchad Donn's orders in 919. * Cerball mac Flann Sinna * Muirgel ingen Flann Sinna, died 928.

Queen of Munster

Gormflaith was notable for having been the successive

queen consort A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but hi ...

and Tara. Gormflaith was married first to King Cormac mac Cuilennáin of

, who had taken vows of celibacy as a bishop. The marriage was not said to be consummated. MacShamhran (p. 203) writes that "difficulties relating to this marriage leave it probable that it is a fiction – created when memory of Gormlaith became assimilated to the "

sovereignty goddess Sovereignty goddess is a scholarly term, almost exclusively used in Celtic studies (although parallels for the idea have been claimed in other traditions, usually under the label ''hieros gamos''). The term denotes a goddess who, personifying a te ...

" who had three husbands". However, recent work has criticised attempts to see influence from supernatural beliefs in the portrayals of Gormflaith.

Queen of Leinster

Cormac was killed at the battle of Bealach Mugna in 908 by an alliance of Flann Sinna of Tara and Cerball mac Muirecáin, King of

. Flann afterwards married Gormflaith to Cerball, who is alleged (according to a text in the '' Book of Leinster'') to have abused her so much that she was forced to return to her father at least once.

Political intrigue

MacShamhran writes (p. 203) ''"... the case for accepting as historical her marriage to Cerball is strengthened by a dindshenchas poem in the Book of Leinster, which also presents a different view of their relationship, implying that she was involved in intrigue on his behalf. She is blamed for the deaths of Cellach Carmain, who was an Ui Muirdaig dynast, and his wife Aillenn – apparently rivals of her husband. This circumstance, along with the fact that Cerball had the support of Flann Sinna at Belach Mugna, fits well with a Clan Cholmain-Ui Faelain alliance in the years prior to that battle."'' Ó Cróinín (pp. 219), citing the poem ''Cell Chorbbáin'' (composed shortly after 909), writes: ''"It states quite categorically that Gormlaith was responsible for the death of Cellach of Carmun and his wife Aillend – 'she laid them in the church ground' (''dos-fuc i talmain cilli'') and by these actions 'she wrought terrible deeds' (''do-ringni gnimu grana''). This is clearly referring to a double-murder, and equally clearly, it is implicit that Gormlaith – and, by extension, her husband Cerball? – were involved together in a conspiracy to remove the reigning king of Leinster (here named as ''Cellach Carmun'') and presumably replace him with Cerball."'' Ó Cróinín goes on to compare the data in the poem with that of ''Cóic ríg tríchat'' to show that ''"there is something wrong with the Ui Dunlainge succession at precisely this point. ... It looks very much as though the struggle for succession ... saw several of the Ui Muiredaig line eliminated in the first half of the ninth century, and their names were simply expunged from the record:"''

Queen of Tara

After Cerball's death in 909 Gormlaith married her stepbrother Niall Glúndub, who died in 919. By him she had Muirchertach mac Néill, ancestor to the

O'Neill dynasty The O'Neill dynasty ( Irish: ''Ó Néill'') are a lineage of Irish Gaelic origin that held prominent positions and titles in Ireland and elsewhere. As kings of Cenél nEógain, they were historically one of the most prominent family of the N ...

of the north of Ireland.

After marriage

The Annals of Clonmacnoise have her becoming poverty-stricken after the death of Niall, reduced to wandering from place to place as a poet to survive. This literary tradition, which appears over a century after her death, may be based upon a misreading of her obit 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� ...

, which instead indicates she died in a

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Poems

A number of poems of later date are ascribed to Gormflaith in

Middle Irish Middle Irish, also called Middle Gaelic (, , ), is the Goidelic language which was spoken in Ireland, most of Scotland and the Isle of Man from AD; it is therefore a contemporary of Late Old English and Early Middle English. The modern Goideli ...

sources, including laments for Cerball and Niall, but not for Cormac. L.M. McCraith, noting that "the charm of Gaelic verse depends for the most part on an elaborate system of repetition and alliteration, which no other language can reproduce", gives this translation of the poem "Gormlaith, the daughter of Flann, speaks to the Priest": "Monk, remove thy foot! Lift it from the grave of Nial. Too long dost thou heap earth On him with whom I fain would lie. Too long dost thou, Monk, there Heap earth on Noble Nial, Thou brown-haired friend, though gentle, Press not with thy sole the earth! Do not too firmly close the grave O Priest, whose office is so sad. Rise off the fair, the dark-knee’d Nial, Monk! Remove thy foot! O Mac Nial of finest gold 'Tis not my will that thou are bound 'i.e.'' in grave-clothes Leave – Ah! leave his stone and grave. Monk! Remove thy foot! I am Gormley, regent queen. Daughter I of Flann the Bold! Stand not thou upon the grave. Monk! Remove thy foot!”

Family tree

Gormlaith ingen Flann mac Conaing = Flann Sinna = , , __________________________________, , _________________________________________________________________ , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Gormflaith, d. 948. Donnchad Donn Cerball Máel Ruanaid Óengus Áed Conchobar Donnell Lígach Muirgel =Niall Glúndub , , , , , Muirchertach mac Néill Donnall, King of Tara , , , , Domnall ua Neill Máel Sechnaill mac Domnaill , , , ,

Ua Mael Sechlainn

References

* ''Three weddings and a funeral: rewriting Irish political history in the tenth century'', Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, pp. 212–224; and ''Gormfhlaith, daughter of Flann Sinna and the lure of the sovereignty goddess'', Máirín Ní Dhonnchadha, pp. 225–237, in ''Seanchas: Studies in Early and Medieval Irish Archaeology, History and Literature in Honour of Francis J. Byrne'', Dublin: Four Courts, 1999. . * ''Gormlaith (d. 948)'', p. 203, Ailbhe MacShamrain, in ''Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia'', 2005. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gormflaith ingen Flann Sinna Irish royal consorts 9th-century Irish writers 10th-century Irish writers People from County Westmeath Irish princesses 9th-century Irish women 9th-century Irish people 10th-century Irish women writers Irish women poets 870s births Year of birth uncertain 948 deaths 10th-century Irish women 10th-century Irish people 10th-century Irish poets 9th-century Irish poets Gaels