Máel Coluim mac Domnaill (

anglicised Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influen ...

Malcolm I; died 954) was king of Alba (before 943 – 954), becoming king when his cousin Constantine II abdicated to become a monk. He was the son of

Donald II Domnall mac Causantín ( Modern Gaelic: , IPA: �t̪oːvnəɫ̪ˈmaʰkˈxoːʃɪm, anglicised as Donald II (died 900), was King of the Picts or King of Alba in the late 9th century. He was the son of Constantine I (Causantín mac Cináeda). Donald ...

Biography

Malcolm was born in 897 in Auchencairn, he was the son of Donald II, who had reigned from 889 until 900. By the 940s, he was no longer a young man, and may have become impatient in awaiting the throne. Willingly or not—the 11th-century '' Prophecy of Berchán'', a verse history in the form of a supposed prophecy, states that it was not a voluntary decision that Constantine II abdicated in 943 and entered a monastery, leaving the kingdom to Máel Coluim. Seven years later, the ''Chronicle of the Kings of Alba'' says:

alcolm Iplundered the English as far as the
River Tees The River Tees (), in Northern England, rises on the eastern slope of Cross Fell in the North Pennines and flows eastwards for to reach the North Sea between Hartlepool and Redcar near Middlesbrough. The modern day history of the river has be ...
, and he seized a multitude of people and many herds of cattle: and the Scots called this the raid of Albidosorum, that is, Nainndisi. But others say that Constantine made this raid, asking of the king, Malcolm, that the kingship should be given to him for a week's time, so that he could visit the English. In fact, it was Malcolm who made the raid, but Constantine incited him, as I have said.

Woolf suggests that the association of Constantine with the raid is a late addition, one derived from a now-lost saga or poem. He died in the shield wall next to his men. Máel Coluim would be the third in his immediate family to die violently, his father

and grandfather

Constantine I Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterranea ...

both having met similar fates 54 years earlier in 900 and 77 years earlier in 877, respectively. In 945, Edmund I of England, having expelled

Amlaíb Cuarán Amlaíb mac Sitric (d. 980; non, Óláfr Sigtryggsson ), commonly called Amlaíb Cuarán (O.N.: ), was a 10th-century Norse-Gael who was King of Northumbria and Dublin. His byname, ''cuarán'', is usually translated as "sandal". His name appe ...

(Olaf Sihtricsson) from Northumbria, devastated Cumbria and blinded two sons of Domnall mac Eógain, king of Strathclyde. It is said that he then "let" or "commended" Strathclyde to Máel Coluim in return for an alliance. What is to be understood by "let" or "commended" is unclear, but it may well mean that Máel Coluim had been the overlord of Strathclyde and that Edmund recognised this while taking lands in southern Cumbria for himself. The '' Chronicle of the Kings of Alba'' says that Máel Coluim took an army into

Moray Moray () gd, Moireibh or ') is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Between 1975 ...

"and slew Cellach". Cellach is not named in the surviving genealogies of the rulers of Moray, and his identity is unknown. Máel Coluim appears to have kept his agreement with the late English king, which may have been renewed with the new king, Edmund having been murdered in 946 and succeeded by his brother Eadred. Eric Haraldsson took York in 948, before being driven out by Eadred, and when Amlaíb Cuarán again took York in 949–950, Máel Coluim raided Northumbria as far south as the Tees taking "a multitude of people and many herds of cattle" according to the Chronicle. The ''

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' ( ga, Annála Uladh) are annals of 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 Luinín, ...

'' for 952 report a battle between "the men of Alba and the Britons

f Strathclyde F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. Hist ...

and the English" against the foreigners, ''i.e.'', the Northmen or the Norse-Gaels. This battle is not reported by the ''

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...

'', and it is unclear whether it should be related to the expulsion of Amlaíb Cuarán from York or the return of Eric. The ''Annals of Ulster'' report that Máel Coluim was killed in 954. Other sources place this most probably in the Mearns, either at

Fetteresso The Kirktown of Fetteresso is a well-preserved village near Stonehaven, Scotland. In the planning area of Kincardine and Mearns, Aberdeenshire, this village contains many very old stone residential structures as well as the Church of St. Cia ...

following the Chronicle, or at Dunnottar following '' The Prophecy of Berchán''. He was buried on

Iona Iona (; gd, Ì Chaluim Chille (IPA: �iːˈxaɫ̪ɯimˈçiʎə, sometimes simply ''Ì''; sco, Iona) is a small island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there ...

. Some versions of the ''Chronicle'', and the '' Chronicle of Melrose'', are read as placing Máel Coluim's death at Blervie, near Forres.''Early Sources'', pp. 452–454.

Issue

The name of Máel Coluim's wife is not known; however, it is known he had 2 sons: * Dub, King of Scotland, also known as Dub mac Maíl Coluim and Duff, King of Alba 962–967 * Kenneth II of Scotland, also known as Cináed mac Maíl Coluim, King of Alba 971–995

References

External links

CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts
at University College Cork includes the ''Annals of Ulster'', ''Tigernach'', ''the Four Masters'' and ''Innisfallen'', the ''Chronicon Scotorum'', the ''Lebor Bretnach'' (which includes the ''Duan Albanach''), Genealogies, and various Saints' Lives. Most are translated into English, or translations are in progress.
(CKA) The Chronicle of the Kings of Alba
* The Anglo-Saxon Chronicl

by Tony Jebson an
translated
at the Medieval and Classical Literature Library. {{DEFAULTSORT:Malcolm 01 of Scots 954 deaths 9th-century births Year of birth unknown 9th-century Scottish people 10th-century Scottish monarchs House of Alpin Burials at Iona Abbey

Biography

Issue

References

Further reading

External links