General Notes

The Irish Kings of Dalriada
(to 501 A.D.)
Around the time the Romans were in Britain (55 B.C. to 409 A.D.), there were two races occupying what is today Scotland: the Picts and the Britons. These Celtic peoples had successfully resisted the Roman legions, and what the Romans called Caledonia was never incorporated into the Empire. As a result, very little is known about these early inhabitants, apart from brief descriptions by Roman writers. As the Romans withdrew from Britain, these north islanders were faced with new invaders. These were the Scots from Ireland, and the Angles from Germany. It is with the Scots that we are concerned, for it is they who finally succeeded in conquering Scotland, uniting its peoples and giving them their line of kings. From these Scots we can also trace the descent of what became the Clan MacKay.
The Scots came from a kingdom in Ireland which was known as Dalriada. This kingdom corresponded roughly with the modern County Antrim in Northern Ireland. Very little is known about the kings of Dalriada apart from their names. These are found in two mediæval sources, the Book of Ballymote and the Pedigree of the Scottish Kings. It should be noted that these sources were not written contemporaneously with the events which they describe. Often, they are copies of original material which is now lost to us, and they were written centuries after the fact. It is difficult to verify the information they give with supporting evidence, which makes the accuracy of that information doubtful. The list of the kings of Dalriada should therefore be regarded as legendary.
The Book of Ballymote gives 38 names in its genealogy, all presented as the direct line of kings. It begins with the name Angus Turbech of Tara. Tara, incidentally, is the ancient hall of the High Kings of Ireland. It is on a hill in County Meath, Eire, and its mention in a list of Kings of Dalriada implies that the Dalriada, or "race of Riada," are descended from the High Kings. The genealogy ends with the name of Fergus, the son of Erc. With Erc we are on firmer ground: he was a king of Dalriada who died around 501 A.D.. If the list is correct (and this is most unlikely), then his ancestor, Angus Turbech of Tara, would have ruled sometime around 700 B.C.. The Pedigree of the Scottish Kings contains 25 names, and differs somewhat from the Book of Ballymote. The last eight names, though, from Sen-chormac to Fergus, are the same. The two lists of the kings of Dalriada will be found in Table 1.
The Dalriada crossed the North Channel from Ireland to Kintyre in Scotland, eventually establishing a kingdom around Argyll. The first record of this migration is in 258 A.D., when the Romans noted that Scots from the north attacked south as far as London. In time, the Dalriadan kingdom in Scotland overshadowed that in Ireland, and the kings made their home in Argyll, in its ancient capital of Dunadd. Around the year 500 A.D., the two sons of Erc, Fergus and Loarn, were kings of Dalriada in Scotland.
Table 1
The Irish Kings of Dalriada
Book of Ballymote 1       Pedigree of the Scottish Kings 2
Angus Turbech of Tara
Fiachu Fer-mara
Ailill Erand
Feradach
Forgo
Maine
Arnail
Ro-Thrir
Trir
Ro-Sin
Sin
Dedad
Iar
Ailill               Eogan
Eogan                Eterscel
Eterscel             Conaire Mor
Conaire Mor              Admor
Daire Dornmor             Coirpre
Coirpre Crom-chend        Daire Dorn-mor
Mug-lama            Coirpre Crom-chend
Conaire Coem              Ellatig
Coirpre Riata             Lugaid
Cindtai                   Mug-lama
Guaire               Conaire
Cince               Eochaid Riata
Fedlimid Lamdoit          Fiachra Cathmail
Fiachu Tathmael           Eochaid Antoit
Eochaid Antoit            Achircir
Aithir               Findfece
Laithluaithi             Cruitlinde
Sen-chormac          Sen-chormac
Fedlimid             Fedlimid Ruamnach
Angus Buaidnech           Angus Buidnech
Fedlimid Aislingthe       Fedl