Laughed Ard Érenn

The laughed Ard Érenn indicates, in the Celtic Mythologie and the medieval history of the Ireland, the sovereign who reigns on the totality of the island. “Laughed Ard” means supreme king (sometimes translated by “high king”) and “Érenn” comes from the goddess Ériu, true personification of the country.

The mythical time

The literary sources relating to the mythical history of Ireland describe us an island divided into four kingdoms the Connaught, the Leinster, the Munster, and the Ulster. There exists a fifth kingdom in the center, Meath where seat the laughed Ard Érenn , the capital is Tara.

the kings of the four “provinces” must discharge a tax called boroma , which consists of cattle. Nonthe payment of this tax is a pretext with warlike forwardings as tells it the Forbuis Droma Damhghaire (the Siège of Druim Damhghaire ) in which the laughed ard Cormac Mac Airt invades the Munster.

Sovereignty at the Celtes is associated with an economic function, which is the right redistribution of the richnesses. The king Bres, who reigns a time on the Tuatha Dé Danann is regarded as a bad king, because of its avarice; the Druid Coipre, by a satire, the constrained one to withdraw itself.

Historical times

A descendant of Idiot Cétchathach, Niall Noigiallach died in 405 ap. J.C according to the traditional date raised in the " Yearly of the Furnaces Masters " but that modern criticism tends to defer towards 450 ap. J.C, is regarded as the first the laughed Ard Érenn semi legendary semi history.

Except for the reigns of its nephew Dathí mac Fichra (death in 428) and of that of the son of this last Ailill Molt (death in 483), the descendants of Niall Noigiallach occupied continuously the throne of Tara and monopolized the prestigious title although stripped of real capacity of laughed Ard Érenn until in 1022.

Several dynasties O' Neill asserted indeed Niall Noigiallach like ancestor:

After the reigns his/her son Loegaire mac Neill (death in 463) and of his small son Lugaid mac Loeguire (death in 508) as that of his back small son Tuathal Maelgard mac Cormac Caech mac Coirpre (death in 544) the title of laughed Ard Érenn was carried by the descendants of Niall established in the North of the Ireland and in the kingdom of Meath.

Following the conquest of the north and west of the Ulster by two of wire of Niall; Éogan and Conall Gulban created for themselves the dynasties of the Cenél nÉogain in Shooting-Eogain and of the Cenél Conaill in Shooting-Conaill.

At the same time in the kingdom of Meath the descendants of Conall Criamthan, other wire of Niall, constituted in the east the Sil nAedo Sláine which reigned on the royaune of Brega and in the west the Clann Cholmáin which occupied the area of Meath.

The laughed Ard Érenn O' Neill of the lines of the South and North alternated on the throne of Tara in a rather regular way although after the reign of Cinaed mac Iragalach (724 - 727), descendants of Aed Slainé, Sil nAedo Sláine, were excluded from it except notable for Conghalach Cnogba (944 - 956) with Xe century and that no member of Cenél Conaill carried this title after Flaithbhertach (727 - 734).

The last laughed Ard Érenn has to be established within this framework was Mael Seachlainn II Mór mac Domnaill of Meath resulting from the Cholmáin Clan. Drawn aside of providing by Brian Boru in 1002 taken again it its title without dispute for died with Brian until its own death in 1022.

The title was then disputed in quasi permanence between

  • the Ua Briain downward kings of Munster of Brian Boru
  • the MacLochlainn them even resulting from the O' Neill of Cenél nÉogain
  • the Ua Conchobair kings of Connacht which claimed to kill from Brian an older brother of Niall Noigiallach
  • Diarmait mac Mail Na mBo Ui Cheinnselaigh, king of Leinster died in 1072, whose family had never carried the laughed Ar title Érenn.

The sum of money laughed Ard Érenn was Ruaidri mac Toirdhealbach Ua Conchobair which renonça " de facto " in its title in favor of Henri II of England to the treaty of Windsor in 1175 and died withdrawn in a monastery in 1198.

Two of the chiefs of Irish resistance against the Anglo-Normans Brian Ua Neill killed in 1260 and the Scot Edubard Briuis killed in 1318, in vain tried to restore this title prestigious symbolic system but at the time of their engagements for the independence of the Ireland.

List kings according to the Baille Chuind Chétchathaig

The Baille Chuinn Chétchathaig (the frenzy of Conn To the hundred Combat) is a text written towards 700 ap. J.C which contains a list of kings of Tara, very different from that which one can establish starting from the entries of the Annales of Ulster or of the Annales of the four Masters these last having been formatted only one millenium later!

It is estimated that the last four kings are fictitious because the list seems to be drawn up at the time of Fínnachta Fledach. Certain kings of clearly identifiable others are not chronologically moved.

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