Anglo-Saxons
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Kenneth MacAlpin Part III – a modern interpretation
In the last two blog posts (The Last Pictish Kings: Part 2 – Kenneth, Brude, Drust… and Kenneth and Kenneth MacAlpin Part II ) I looked at the story of Kenneth MacAlpin, the man who is often described as the first king of the Scots. The earlier sources call him king of the Picts, but Continue reading
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Kenneth MacAlpin Part II
In The Last Pictish Kings: Part 2 – Kenneth, Brude, Drust… and Kenneth, I posed the question: was Kenneth MacAlpin a Gael or a Pict? I was grateful to receive a number of comments and suggestion in various social media groups where I shared the link to the blog, and it confirmed my suspicion that Continue reading
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The Last Pictish Kings: Part 2 – Kenneth, Brude, Drust… and Kenneth
In the last post we saw how, after the catastrophic defeat by the Norse in 839 which impacted both the Picts and the Dál Riadan Scots, Uurad ruled in Pictland for three years, and was based in Perthshire. His son, Bred, then ruled for one year. For those who followed, the truth becomes murkier, not Continue reading
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Vikings v Picts, Scots, Irish and Anglo-Saxons
In the year 839 the Annals of Ulster tell us about an important battle in which the Vikings defeated the Picts: “Bellum re genntib for firu Fortrenn in quo ceciderunt Euganan m. Oengusa ⁊ Bran m. Oengussa ⁊ Ęd m. Boanta ⁊ alii pene innumerabiles ceciderunt.”[1] (The heathens won a battle against the men of Continue reading
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Onuist II and the Flag of Scotland
While this blog tries as best as it can, using historical references and other evidence to make sense of what was happening in the period that it covers, from time to time we will come across stories that are more legend or myth than fact. This post will be one of those as it relates Continue reading
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The Roaring ’20s (the 820s)
This post will look at the 3rd decade of the 9th century – the 820s – and will attempt to summarise what was happening in Northern Britain, Ireland and Scandinavia during those years while introducing some of the characters who will play a leading role in events to come. In my post Constantin, son of Continue reading
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Iona and the Vikings
The island of Iona lies on the edge of Scotland. Its eastern side is less than a mile from the south-western tip of the isle of Mull, and if you were to sail due west from the other side, the next piece of land would not be encountered for some 2,000 miles (one of the Continue reading
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Arrival of the Northmen
The portentous weather and astronomical events we looked at in Bad Weather, Bad Omens continued into the last decade of the 8th century with what is perhaps the most infamous of all happening in the year 793. Recounted in a number of sources[1] the gist is that there were flashes of fire in the skies Continue reading
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Kings in the North
The Northern Monarchies in the late 8th Century. In the last article I looked at some of the descriptions of bad weather and bad omens from the second half of the 8th century in northern Britain. This post will look at the political landscape during that time, not an easy task with the Irish Annals Continue reading
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Bad Weather, Bad Omens
In the years following the death of Onuist, King of Picts, in 761, the sources contain much less about Pictish affairs than we saw in the first half of the century. However any gaps seem to be filled with descriptions of the weather – and particularly bad weather – along with astrological and natural or Continue reading
The Northern Tapestry 