Tullyhogue Fort, also spelt TullaghogeDiscover Northern Ireland: Tullaghoge Fort
/ref> or Tullahoge (from

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 ...

''Tulach Óc'' meaning "hill of youth" or "mound of the young warriors"), is a large mound on the outskirts of

Tullyhogue Tullyhogue, also called Tullaghoge or Tullahoge (), is a small village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is within the civil parish of Desertcreat and is about two miles or three kilometres south of Cookstown. Nearby Tullyhog ...

village near Cookstown, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It has a depressed centre and is surrounded by trees. It is an ancient ceremonial site where the Chiefs of the Clan O'Neill of Tyrone were inaugurated. Tullahogue faux inauguration stone

It is a State Care Historic Monument sited in the

townland A townland (; Ulster-Scots: ''toonlann'') is a traditional small land division used in Ireland and in the Western Isles of Scotland, typically covering . The townland system is of medieval Gaelic origin, predating the Norman invasion, and mo ...

of Ballymully Glebe, in the

Cookstown District Council Cookstown District Council (; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster Scots: ''Districk Cooncil o Cookestoun'') was a district council covering an area largely in County Tyrone and partly in County Londonderry. It merged with Dungannon and South Tyrone B ...

area, at grid reference: H8250 7430. The inauguration site is a Scheduled Historic Monument at grid ref: H8251 7428.

History

The date of the construction of Tullyhogue fort is not known; however, it is believed to have held great significance from early times, possessing a form of ritual importance long before the O'Neills became associated with the site. Tullyhogue '' ráth'' was originally associated with the Uí Tuirtri of Airgialla who were displaced by

branches of the Cenél nEógain A branch, also called a ramus in botany, is a stem that grows off from another stem, or when structures like veins in leaves are divided into smaller veins. History and etymology In Old English, there are numerous words for branch, includ ...

. The first to enter the area in the tenth-century were the who are described in their genealogies in the twelfth-century manuscript

Rawlinson B 502 Oxford, Bodleian Library, Rawlinson B 502 is a medieval Irish manuscript which currently resides in the Bodleian Library, Oxford. It ranks as one of the three major surviving Irish manuscripts to have been produced in pre-Norman Ireland, the t ...

as of 'Tilcha Oc'. Over time they moved north into Glenconkeyne and

Loughinsholin Loughinsholin () is a barony in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Its southeast borders the northwest shore of Lough Neagh, and itself is bordered by seven other baronies: Dungannon Upper to the south; Strabane Upper to the west; Keenaght ...

and were replaced by the Cenél Feargusa who included the O'Hagans, supporters of 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 ...

interest. Before 1056 they took possession of the site as 'reachtaire' (steward or controller of the royal household) which they continued to occupy down to the 17th century. At this time the Cenél nEógain had been largely bereft of effective leadership candidates and the branches in the Tulach Óc

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

made the unusual political decision to import an alien dynasty; Conchobar and his brother Cennétig, grandsons of Donnchadh mac Briain, bitter rivals to the main branch of the royal Munster

O'Brien dynasty The O'Brien dynasty (; ; genitive ''Uí Bhriain'' ) was an Irish Clan and noble house of Munster, founded in the 10th century by Brian Boru of the Dál gCais (Dalcassians). After becoming King of Munster, through conquest he established hims ...

. They became successive 'Kings of Telach Óc' for a short period before 1084 with the support of the Meic Lochlainn who were happy to deprive potential internal rivals of a secure base of operation.Hogan, James, 'The Ua Briain kingship of Telach Oc' in John Ryan (ed), ''Feilsgribhinn Eoin Mhic Neill'', pages 406-44, At the Sign of the Three Candle, 1940. The Ua Briain branch was unable to establish itself permanently but the disruption allowed

Domnall Ua Lochlainn Domhnall Ua Lochlainn (old spelling: Domnall Ua Lochlainn) (1048 – 10 February 1121), also known as Domhnall Mac Lochlainn (old spelling: Domnall Mac Lochlainn), was king of the Cenél Eogain, over-king of Ailech, and alleged High King o ...

, son-in-law to Cennétig, to become

King of Ailech The Kings of Ailech were the over-kings of the Medieval Ireland, medieval Irish Provinces of Ireland, province of Ailech in north-western Ireland. It encompassed the territories of the Cenél nEógain and Cenél Conaill. After the battle of Cl ...

in 1083 and the threat of Ó Néill rivals disappeared for a number of generations. The O'Hagans continued to dwell at the site and became its hereditary guardians, with their burial place at Donaghrisk situated at the bottom of the hill. In the later medieval period it became the inauguration site of the O'Neill dynasty, where the title ''An Ó Néill'' ('The O'Neill') was bestowed upon each new lord. The inauguration was carried out by the heads of the O'Cahan and O'Hagan. O'Cahan, the O'Neill's principal sub-chief, would throw a golden sandal over the new lord's head to signify good fortune. O'Hagan, being the hereditary guardian of Tullyhogue, would place the shoe on the O'Neill's foot and present him with a rod of office. The inauguration of

Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone (; – 20 July 1616) was an Irish lord and key figure of the Nine Years' War. Known as the "Great Earl", he led the confederacy of Irish lords against the English Crown in resistance to the Tudor conquest of Ir ...

in 1595 was the last such event for an O'Neill to take place at Tullyhogue.

Leac na Rí

The inauguration stone was a large boulder known as the ''Leac na

Rí Rí, or commonly ríg (genitive), is an ancient Gaelic word meaning 'king'. It is used in historical texts referring to the Irish and Scottish kings, and those of similar rank. While the Modern Irish word is exactly the same, in modern Scottis ...

'', which meant 'the flagstone of the kings'. It stood outside Tullyhogue fort where, by the 16th century, it had become incorporated into a ceremonial stone chair where three large slabs had been placed around it. In 1602 during the

Nine Years War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between France and the Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial possessions in the Americas, India, and West Africa. Relat ...

, Lord Mountjoy, in charge of the English forces at war with Lord Tyrone, smashed the inauguration stone to symbolically end the O'Neill's sovereignty. The ''Leac na Rí'' is stated as being the

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

counterpart to the Stone of Destiny, which is now kept at

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age. There has been a royal castle on the rock since the reign of Malcol ...

and is used as part of the Coronation Chair in

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

during the

Coronation of the British monarch The coronation of the monarch of the United Kingdom is an initiation ceremony in which they are formally invested with regalia and crowned at Westminster Abbey. It corresponds to the coronations that formerly took place in other European monarch ...

. The ''Leac na Rí'' is also stated as reputedly having been blessed by St. Patrick.

History

Leac na Rí

See also

Notes

References

Further reading