Person Sheet


Name Brian Bórúma MACCENNETIG , King of Munster, High King of Ireland
Alias/AKA Brian Bórú153
Birth Date ca 0941153
Birth Place Béal Bórú, County Clare, Ireland
Birth Memo Near Killaloe. See Research Notes.
Death Date Apr 23, 1014149,153
Death Place Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland
Death Memo In the Battle of Clontarf. Killed in his tent by a Viking warrior.
Burial Place County Armagh, Ireland149
Father Cennétig MACLORCAIN , King of Thomond (?-0951)
Mother Be Bend INGEN URCHADA
Spouses
1 Gormflaeth INGEN MURCHADA MACFINN
Alias/AKA Gormflaeth of Naas153
Birth Date ? 149,153
Death Date 1030149
Father Morugh MACFINN , King of Leinster (?-0972)
Children Donnchad (?-1064)
2 Unknown UNKNOWN
Birth Date ?
Death Date ?
Children Slani
Notes for Brian Bórúma MACCENNETIG , King of Munster, High King of Ireland
"Brian Bórúma mac Cennetig, known popularly as Brian Bórú, is undoubtedly the most well known ard-rí (ARD-ree) or High King of Ireland of Ireland and arguably the only ard-rí who, like Ælfred the Great of England, actually controlled the entire country.
"Brian Bórú was born circa 941 at Béal Bórú (from which he received his name), near Killaloe, County Clare, at a time when the Norse had secured many seaports and frequently plundered and harried the neighbouring countryside. In 976 he succeeded his brother Mathúin as king of Dál gCais and claimant to the kingship of Munster. By 999, after a series of wars, he was acknowledged as High King of Ireland.
"The Battle of Clontarf
"Brian Bórú's reign was marked by continuous opposition. This came to a head in the early eleventh century. Máel Mórda, the king of Leinster, made an alliance with the Dublin Norse under Sigurd, Earl of Orkney and their overseas allies. Brian's forces defeated this union at Clontarf, about four miles north of modern Dublin, on Good Friday, April 23, 1014. Brian, too aged to fight, was awaiting news of the battle when he was slain in his tent by a Viking intruder. The battle of Clontarf marked the end of any major Viking involvement in Irish wars.
"From this point on, the role of the Norsemen in Ireland was largely peaceful, and they intermarried with the Irish and concentrated on developing trade. However, with the death of Brian Bórú in 1014, Ireland once again became an island of conflicting dynasties, with the High King unable to enforce acceptance by all the provinces."153

See also "Brian Boru", <http://www.usna.edu/EnglishDept/ilv/boru.htm>.
Research Notes
BIRTH: One source gives his parentage, with his birthdate given as ca 926 and no place given.149 Another gives his birthdate as ca 941 at Béal Bórú, with no parentage given.153
Last Modified Apr 5, 2003 Created Dec 31, 2003 by Reunion for Macintosh

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