Murchad mac Brain Mut (died 727) was a King of

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

from the

Uí Dúnlainge The Uí Dúnlainge, from the Old Irish "grandsons (or descendants) of Dúnlaing", were an Irish dynasty of Leinster kings who traced their descent from Dúnlaing mac Énda Niada. He was said to be a cousin of Énnae Cennsalach, eponymous ancest ...

branch of the Laigin. He was the son of Bran Mut mac Conaill (died 696), a previous king. He ruled from 715 to 727.

His reign

His first mention in the annals is when he began his reign by an inaugural raid into

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following th ...

to Cashel in 715. His reign saw warfare with the Ui Neill and in 719 they harried Leinster 5 times. Murchad aligned himself with the pretensions of

Cathal mac Finguine Cathal mac Finguine (died 742) was an Irish King of Munster or Cashel, and effectively High King of Ireland as well. He belonged to the Eóganacht Glendamnach sept of the dominant Eóganachta kin-group whose members dominated Munster from the 7 ...

(died 742), the King of

and in 721 they harried

Brega Brega , also known as ''Mersa Brega'' or ''Marsa al-Brega'' ( ar, مرسى البريقة , i.e. "Brega Seaport"), is a complex of several smaller towns, industry installations and education establishments situated in Libya on the Gulf of Sidra, ...

together. However Cathal made peace with the high king

Fergal mac Máele Dúin Fergal mac Máele Dúin (died 11 December 722) was High King of Ireland. Fergal belonged to the Cenél nEógain sept of the northern Uí Néill. He was the son of Máel Dúin mac Máele Fithrich (died 681), a King of Ailech, and great grandson ...

(died 722) of the

Cenél nEógain Cenél is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Cenél Conaill, the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Conall Gulban, son of Niall Noígiallach defined by oral and recorded history * Cenél nEógain (in English, Cenel Eogan) is ...

and that same year in 721 Fergal invaded Leinster and enforced the payment of the cattle tribute. The Leinstermen broke the truce however, and Fergal retaliated by invading again. However in December of 722 Fergal and numerous nobles of the Ui Neill were slain at the

Battle of Allen A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

(

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the ...

) by the Leinstermen led by Murchad. The saga ''Cath Almaine'' preserves the story of this battle and mentions that Murchad's son Dúnchad mac Murchado (died 728) and

Áed mac Colggen Áed mac Colggen (died 738) was a king of the Uí Cheinnselaig of Leinster. Some sources incorrectly make him joint king of Leinster with Bran Becc mac Murchado, but it appears that Áed was main ruler of Leinster in 738. His father Colcú mac B ...

(died 738) of the Uí Cheinnselaig fought for Leinster. The breaking of the truce angered Cathal and they sent the head of Fergal to him. The ''Annals of Tigernach'' claim that the high king Cináed mac Írgalaig (died 728) of the

Síl nÁedo Sláine Síl nÁedo Sláine () are the descendants of Áed Sláine (Áed mac Diarmato), son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Part of the Southern Uí Néill—they were the kings of Brega—they claimed descent from Niall Noígiallach and his son Co ...

defeated the Laigin at the Battle of Maíne in 726 and obtained his demands but this is not confirmed by other annals. The rise of the Ui Dunlainge was assisted by the decline of the

Uí Máil Uí Máil were an Irish dynasty of Leinster. They were descended from Maine Mál, the brother of the legendary high king Cathair Mór. The Uí Máil were a dominant dynasty in Leinster competing for the kingship in the 7th century before being event ...

. Two of the sons of

Cellach Cualann Cellach Cualann mac Gerthidi (died 715) was the last Uí Máil king of Leinster. Cellach's byname is derived from the land of ''Cualu'' which lay around Glendalough. The name Uí Máil may mean "grandsons of the princes". This, along with th ...

(died 715), the previous king were slain during his reign. Áed mac Cellaig (died 719) was slain at the Battle of Finnabair (Fennor, Co.Kildare) in a fight among the Laigin and Crimthann mac Cellaig (died 726) was slain at the Battle of Belach Lice at an immature age.''Annals of Ulster'' AU 719.4; AU 726.4 One of Murchad's wives was Conchenn ingen Cellaig (died 743) of the Uí Máil, she was the mother of Fáelán mac Murchado (died 738) and Muiredach mac Murchado (died 760), who were kings of Leinster. Other sons included Dúnchad mac Murchado (died 728) and

Bran Becc mac Murchado Bran Becc mac Murchada (died 738) was a King of Leinster from the Uí Dúnlainge branch of the Laigin. He was the son of Murchad mac Brain Mut (died 727), a previous king. He ruled briefly in 738. The ''Annals of Tigernach'' claim that in 738 Ca ...

(died 738), also kings of Leinster.

Notes

References

* ''Annals of Ulster'' a
CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts
a
University College Cork
* ''Annals of Tigernach'' a

a
University College Cork
* Byrne, Francis John (2001), Irish Kings and High-Kings, Dublin: Four Courts Press, * ''Book of Leinster'',''Rig Laigin'' a

a
University College Cork
*Wiley,Dan M.

''The Cycle of the Kings''

External links

a
University College Cork
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murchad Mac Brain Mut Kings of Leinster Kings of Uí Dúnlainge 7th-century births 727 deaths 8th-century Irish monarchs People from County Kildare

His reign

Notes

See also

References

External links