Gaelic Ireland and the Crusades
1095 - 1230Twelfth
Century
By
Warren Lawless
List II
Dr. K Simms
With thanks to Dr. Katherine
Simms and Dr. Sean Duffy
The Thirteenth
Century Crusades and Conclusion
Appendix A - Chronology of the Crusades
Appendix B - Irish Royal Pilgrimages to Rome and the Holy
Land
This interesting
topic provided insights into Ireland's relationship to Europe
and
the issue of how in tune with or isolated from Continental Europe we were.
This essay is an examination of the case for Irish
involvement in the eleventh and twelfth century crusading movement and the
issues it raises for Gaelic Ireland's relationship with Europe. The
historian Michael Dolley, writing in 1972, assumed that Ireland was uninvolved
in the First Crusade: [1]
"On 15 July 1099, to
shouts of 'God wills it', a random and ragged but reasonably representative array
of the chivalry of Western Europe stormed Jerusalem...We should not
be surprized that there were no Irishmen among these knights... wWhere Europe
was concerned Ireland was a land apart...".
W.L
Warren, writing in 1969, put the case clearly: [2]
"I
am skeptical of suggestions that the Irish of the twelfth-century were more in
tune with the Europe of their own day than they had been previously: show me a crusade that had an an Irish contingent
and I may be more inclined to believe it."
Frankish Europe
(i.e the old Carolingian Empire, plus lands into which its practises had spread
in Britain, Central Europe, the Eastern Mediterranean and Spain) was basically
different from Gaelic Ireland; Take for example the use of coinage in the
Frankish economy, the different dynastic succession practises, and the parish
system in their Churches. However, this did not preclude Irish involvement in
the Frankish-led crusades, as they were "...the common enterprize of all
Christians "[3]
and people from peripheral
regions, such as Wales, Man, the Orkneys, Scotland, Denmark and Norway, are
known to have participated between 1095 and 1192.
If
i Earlier work on Irish participation in the First
Crusade had reveanvolvement in the crusades can be used as a measure
of how much Gaelic Ireland was in tune with European developments, then the
evidence at first appears negative. The Irish annals for this period contain
only one reference to the crusades[4] and none whatsoever to
Gaelic crusaders. This would seem to confirm Warren's view. However, there exists Continental sources for Irish involvement in the crusades. What we shouldcan
conclude from the Irish Aannals is that any Gaelic involvement in the
early crusading movement must have been of a minor nature.
The references to Irish crusaders in foreign chronicles present
difficulties; apart from the normal question of accuracy, there
is the additional complication in that at this time the use of the word Scoti was undergoing a change in usage, from describing
Irish persons to describing Scottish persons. However, there is
one indisputable reference to Irish involvement by Ekkehard of Aura. He went to
the Holyland in 1101 and wrote his account of the First Crusade
around 1115. It provides a list of nations who participated in the effort:[5]
"...centum millia
virorum ex Aquitania scilicet atque Normannia, Anglia, Scotia et Hibernia, Britannia, Galicia,
Wasconia, Gallia, Flandria, Lotharingia, caeterisque gentibus christianis, quaram nunc minime
occurrunt vocabula."
Though lengthy, there is supportive
evidence for the involvement of all the other nations he lists. Moreover, Ekkehard is treated as a
good source for the First Crusade as he was writing in the Holyland soon after the
events he described.
Fulcher of Chartes was another chronicler
who participated
in the crusade. His account also stresses the extraordinary mix of peoples
involved in the expedition:[6]
"Sedquis unquam
audivit tot tribus linguae in uno exerito, quum ibi adessent Franci, Flandri,
Frisis, Galli, Allobroges, Lotharingi, Alemanni, Baioarii, Normanni, Angli, Scothi, Aquitani, Itali, Daci, Iberi, Britones,
Graeci, Armeni?"
Here we are faced with the problem of deciphering
whether 'Scothi' is a reference to
Gaelic Scots or Gaelic Irish. Alan MacQuarrie treatment of the
Scottish involvement in the crusades gives four distinct references to 'Scothi' on
the First Crusade, including the above accounts. He acknowledges
the problem of distinguishing whether
writers meant Scots or
Irish. Either way, he asessment of the evidence is that "There are a number of references to Scots
and Irish taking part in the First Crusade in contemporary chronicles which cannot be explained away."[7] While writing
lists of European nations on crusade could provide an author with an
opportunity for generalisation and exaggeration, there is collaborative
evidence for the presence of the various nations listed in the accounts of the
First Crusades. Furthermore, it is significant that the multitude of
peoples involved
included
those of Scotland,
Man, Wales, Scandinavia,
and England, people with whom Gaelic Ireland shared close links.
European
chronicles again make reference to Gaelic involvement in the crusading movement
during the twelfth century. The thirteenth century chronicle of Aubrey ,
a monk of Trois-Fontaines , tells us that in 1190 after the
loss of Jerusalem[8]:
"Inter haec igitur multi
Francorum proceres...cum multis aliis Germanis, Anglis, Burgundianibus,Italis...&
de cuntis Christianismi partibus orbis innunerabiles... properant succerrere
paucis in Syria..."
The
Third Crusade saw major involvement by the King of England ,
Richard I Among the Christian nobles he records was an Irish king[9] ,
and
"Cum Rege Ricardo fuit unus Rex
de Hibernia unus de Wallia & cum eis Comes de Hollandia."
Aubrey
wrote his chronicle between 1227 and 1251. Compiling it he used fifty previous
writers, as well as genealogies, poetry, and communications with contemporary
figures. His work is therefore a compilation, described as more 'curious than critical'.[10]. TThe accuracy of
his work probably varies from year to year. Analysing the relevant extracts
from the chronicle, those nations he lists did participate in
the Third Crusade. The reference to the Welsh king is most likely accurate as
we know that the crusade was preached in Wales in 1188 and that Welsh princes
took crusading vows.[11] The Count of Holland had
travelled with Emperor Frederick II's army, not King Richard I's and had died
of plague at Antioch in 1190. However Aubrey does give us the Counts name
correctly and his presence and death on the crusade. The internal evidence
therefore makes
his reference to an
Irish king credible.I would therefore accept his reference to an Irish
king on the crusade.
Another
reference to
Irish crusading involvement is found in the thirteenth-century
Continental chronicle, the Libellus de Fundatione
Consecrati Sancti Petri. This Irish Benedictine community had
grown from a group of Irish pilgrims at Weih St. Peter in the late eleventh-century
who had built the monastery of St. James (c.1090-1111) and adopted the
Benedictine Rule. Monasteries were built elsewhere in Germany for members of the community and in 1215 St.
James of Ratisbon was recognised as the head of an independent Benedictine
chapter.[12] There is a detailed
description of the mission of certain "comites
crucesignati de Hybernia", who were travelling to Rome and the Holy
Land and bearing gifts from King Conchubhar Ua Briain (+1142) for the German
Schottenkloster at Ratisbon:[13]
"In
illis diebus quidam comites potentes de terra Hybernie crucesignati
erant
et parati versus Romam et Ierosolimam ad peregrinandum..."
'Crucesignati' meant 'signed with
the Cross',
i.e one who had taken crusading vows.
The
Libellus was
written as a propagandist text between 1250-1260 at a time when the privileges
of St. James were under attack from local lay and ecclesiastical powers. The Libellus
blended "fact with fiction" in pursuit of its rights, and so for
example invented a role for Charlemagne in the foundation of Weih St. Peter. [14] Should we therefore trust
the reference to Gaelic crusaders? The author did use reliable sources and historians agree on the Libellus's value: D.A Binchy
says that "...the legend gives a tolerably accurate account of its ([the
monastries)] early days,and forms a very useful
supplement to the Vita Mariani as a
source for the early history of St. James."[15] P.A Breatnach believes
that despite its propagandist purpose "the authentic basis of the account remains
evident and much of the information is clearly historical."[16] What then is the is
evidence to support the specific reference to crusading Irish nobles visiting
St. James on the way to the Holy Land?
The
Irish nobles are
described as travelleding with gifts from King Conchubhar Ua Briain and various unnamed nobles. This
suggests they were Munstermen and vassals of Ua Briain. There is clear evidence
of close links between the Schottenkongregation and the province of Munster
in the recorded works of the congregation. The author of the Visio Tnugdali was an Irishman in St.
James c.1149 and the tale with its references to prominent Irish ecclesiastical
figures and royal figures from Munster shows the author was in touch with
Ireland.[17] In the Visio Tnugdali, written after Conchubhar
Ua Briain's death in 1142, he is described as cruel but is one of the three
Munster kings deserving of a place in the World of Light.[18] Furthermore a necrology
of St. James , Ratisbon , written in
the seventeenth-century , contains the names of twenty-eight Irish
kings and ecclesiacs, two-thirds of which are from the
twelfth-century.[19] Inclusion in a necrology
was generally bought through some form of endowment.[20] The necrology describes
Conchubhar Ua Briain as 'frater noster',
'Our brother'.[21] This
supports the indications of close links between Munster and the German
Schottenklosters contained in the Libellus,
as exemplified by the story of Conchubhar Ua Briain sending gifts to St. James.
All this points to the reliability of the reference to Gaelic crusaders.[22]
The
Libellus places the journey of the
Gaelic comites during the reigns of Conchubhar Ua Briain (1118-1142) and
Emperor Lothar III (1125-1137). This puts the journey outside of a major
crusade and in a special field of endeavor: Soon after the Christians captured
Jerusalem in 1099, contingents of European nobles began arriving to lend
assistance to the new Crusader states of Outremer.[23] Small ,
privately initiated expeditions (called itinerant crusades )
continued to arrive in the Holy-Land for the rest of the century. To take a few
examples , in 1107 King Sigurd 'the Jerusalem-Farer'of
Norway brought a fleet to the Holy-Land ,; in 1150-53 there was a ' Jorsalaferd '
by men of the Orkney Islands; and in 1163 a siege of the Hospitaller
fortress , Krak de Chevaliers, was broken by
a relieving force of Byzantines, assisted by contingents from Wales and
Poitiers.[24] What the Libellus described was a Gaelic
itinerant crusade.
The
evidence suggests that there was Gaelic involvement in the twelfth-century
crusading movement. I
will now examine the factors involved in going on crusade - motivation,
transportation, political dangers, et cetera - to see if our evidence of Gaelic participation in the crusades can be
reconciled with what we know of the resources and motives of twelfth-century
Gaelic rulers.
Having
outlined the documentary evidence for Gaelic involvement in the crusades and
argued for the reliability of these references, it is now necessary to examine what
basis existed for this involvement, and if it was
sufficent to add credence to our evidence.the factors involved
in going on crusade - motivation, transportation, political dangers, et cetera
- to see if our evidence of Gaelic participation in the crusades can be
reconciled with what we know of the resources and motives of elventh and
twelfth-century Gaelic rulers.
The
First Crusade was initiated by Urban II in 1095 in a bid to assist the
Byzantine Empire against Muslimpowers power. His
appeal met with widespread enthusiasm and was transformed into an armed
pilgrimage with the object of seizing the Holy Land and with the reward of
remission of sins. The key reason for the response to this and later crusades
was religion. The people of Latin Christiandom were strongly devoted to
religious practise. Thus the lay aristocracy patronised religious orders, like
the Cluniacs, the
Cistercians and the Knights Templar. Some aristocrats also acted as faithful
allies of the Papal Reform movement. Gaelic Ireland in this period exhibited
the same religious piety.
The well-known movement for church reform in the
eleventh and twelfth centuries was an effort , led
by native clergymen and encouraged by Rome and the Church in England, to bring
Irish social practises and Church organisation
into line with Continental practises.[25] The reformers encountered
some kings who were conservative , for
example Toirdhelbach Ua Conchubhar (1105-1153) , and
some kings who were willing for reasons of politics or piety to support reform ,
for example Muircheartach Ua Briain (1085-1119) and Donnchad Ua Cerbaill , King of
Airgialla (a1138-1168).[26] But even conservatives kings
displayed piety , as is evidenced by the reverential
treatment given a piece of the True Cross which came to the court of the High
King Toirdhelbach
Ua Conchubhar.[27] Where aristocratic piety
is most demonstrable is in the support for monastic orders and church-building.
The High King Muircheartach MacLochlann (+1166) was a patron of the Columban
revival in Ulster;[28] Dairmait MacMurchada
(+1171), King
of Leinster, was
a patron of five Arrousian and one Cistercian foundations;[29] Domnall Mor Ua Briain
(+1194) built three cathedrals , at Killaloe,
Cashel and Limerick , and reportively founded sixteen
monastries.[30] These examples indicate
that kings of high standing expended resources on the Church of their faith. TThe active
religious life among the clergy and the laity, whether conservative or reformer , indicates that there would be a positive response
to the call to religious duty and the offer of religious reward that
accompanied the preaching of the crusades.
This
raises the question of how word of the crusades could reach Gaelic Ireland. Information
could have come through either irregular or organised means. Pilgrims, clerics and traders were bearers of news
and these were certainly traveling ,
in unknown volume, between
Ireland and the rest of Europe.[31] Such news was subject to
inaccuracy: One traveller ,who carried word of the Second Crusade, seems
to have been affected by the anti-semitism of Rodolph the Monk, ,
a self-appointed preacher of the Crusade. Thus the Annals of Tigernach for
1147 tells us that:[32]
"A great
army was collected by the Christians to Jerusalem to extirpate the power of the
Jews "
A
more reliable source were the official
preachers of a crusade. Two such channels open to Gaelic Ireland were the
Papacy and the Cistercians. The former played a leading role in all crusades.
They initiated the call for crusades, offered legal benefits for crusaders and
organised preaching and funding. There is no known Papal letters to Ireland
between 1077 and 1171. However Ireland in the twelfth century was in contact
with the Papacy. The most evident sign of this is the Papal legates active
in Ireland from 1110 onwards.[33] Also, the opposition of
Irish clerical reformers to the abuses of simony and lay control of the Church , the
popularity of Rome in the eleventh century as a destination for pilgrimages
abroad and the recognition of the position of the Pope at the head of the
ecclesiastical hierarchy in De statu
ecclesiae, anthe
Irish church reform document, all attest that Ireland was in communion and
contact with Rome.[34]
The
earliest
survivingfirst evidence of Papal attempts to
engage Ireland in the crusades comes only in 1199. This is a letter addressed
to the Christian world, including Ireland, in which Pope Innocent III calls for
men and money for a crusade against the Saracens. Between 1199 and 1221 there
are ten Papal letters to Ireland concerning
the crusades.[35] Most are general appeals
to the Christian world for aid. One issued in April 1213 is a message invoking
a General Council to discuss Church reform and the recovery of the Holy-Land.
Among its recipients were the kings of Cork , Limerick , Connaught and Meath.[36] The point that can be made is that Gaelic-Papal links were
a source of news of the crusades in the early thirteenth century and may have
had a similar consequence in the elventh and twelfth centuryies.
The
other formal source for word of the crusades in Ireland were the Cistercians.
This austere, yet popular monastic order was introduced into Ireland in 1142 by
Malachy of Armagh (+1148), whilst he was Bishop of Down and Papal
Legate for Ireland. He was supported in this by his friend Bernard, the famed Abbot of Clairvaux. The first Irish
Cistercian foundation was at Mellifont; :
there were seven new abbeys by 1153 and fifteen by 1171.[37] This expansion was
assisted by aristocratic allies of Malachy , such as King
Donnchad Ua Cerbaill of Airgialla and King Diarmait Mac Murchada of Leinster. We
know that Mac Murchada's piety came to the notice of of Bernard of Clairvaux
and that in 1148 he was rewarded by the abbot with a letter of confraternity
with the Cistercians.[38] The significance of all
this is that Bernard of Clairvaux, at the request of Pope Eugenius III, was the
central propagandist for the Second Crusade. Edessa, one of the Crusader
States, had been over-run in 1144 and Latin Europe responded by preparing to
make a new armed pilgrimage to the Holy Land, to save Outremer and gain the
absolution their forbearers had won.[39] Bernard's propaganda was
very strong and successful:[40]
"...O mighty soldier ,
O mighty warrior , you now have a cause in which you
can fight without endangering your soul; a cause in which to win is glorious
and for which to die is gain..."
Diarmait
Mac Murchada received a letter of confraternity from Bernard :; is it not
possible that he also received a request to join the Crusade? We know that he
did not go on
crusade such thing , but
that such a connection can be drawn between an Irish king and the principal
figure of the Second Crusade suggests that the image expressed by Dolley and
Warren of Gaelic Ireland being distinct and isolated may in part be wrong.
Furthermore Bernard of Clairvaux's energetic example "...caused the
Cistercians from now on to become the most devoted crusading
preachers...".[41] That this was the case in
Ireland can be seen from the Papacy's nomination of the Abbot of Mellifont,
along with the Archbishop of Dublin, to preach the Fifth Crusade in Ireland.[42] The Cistercian Order in
Ireland were a sign that twelfth century Gaelic Ireland was being influenced by
Frankish Europe and provided a means of conveying further influences, such as
crusading.
I
will now examine three other prerequisites of crusading activity:
transport, finance and political security. Any Irish crusaders would need
sea-transport, to either the Continent or the Eastern Mediterranean. We know of
several available sources of sea-transport. Warfleets were built and owned by
families like the Corca Laigde and kings such as Toirrdelbach Ua Conchubhar.[43] These were used in river
and coastal warfare, however, and may not have been capable of
long-distance travel,however. Use of the Hiberno-Norse
fleets could be acquired by domination of the Norse towns, as practised by
twelfth century provincial kings, though this option was closed off by
Anglo-Norman expansion. Passage could also be sought on an Irish, English or
Continental trading vessel.[44] AAnother
option was the hiring of vessels, as done by Muirchertach Mac Lochlann in 1154.[45] The evidence therefore is
that Gaelic nobles had access to sea-transportation.
On
the matter of finance, historians of the crusades have stressed the importance
of having a large purse.[46] But apart from Dublin and
its hinterland, the Gaelic economy lacked coinage. Instead cattle-stock was
used as a form of wealth and exchange.[47] Coin could probably be
acquired by trade, with the Lordship for example and
Irish travelers to the Continent obviously managed , with or
without cash. But a journey on crusade would involve large resources, because of the time and distance involved and the needs of the followers a
noble would naturally take with him. The absence of a native coinage was
therefore an obstacle to possible involvement in the crusades.
The final factor to be considered is political security.
As is known, Gaelic politics lacked fixed succession by promogeniture. Warfare
between minor and provincial kings was frequent. Whilst this might not affect
any clerics or other members of the learned class who wished to crusade, I
had considered that it would be impossible for it would be a great
risk for any ruler to detach himself from the struggle for power to
crusade, as a crusader could be away for two to five years. The absence of a
lord and his retinue on crusade would expose his property and followers to
attack and place the retention of power by his family in jeopardy, risks perhaps not
worth the prestige or personal relief of going on crusade. The rulers of
Frankish Europe, however, faced the same problem. Conrad III, King of the
Germans, was initially reluctant to participate in the Second Crusade, as he
was facing serious domestic opposition to his rule.[48] Henry II, King of England ,
in reply to the Patriarch of Jerusalem's plea for aid for the Holy Land in
1185, said[49]
"...that at the present moment it
was not safe for him to leave his kingdom without his controlling hand and
protection..."
And
when Henry II and his rival, Philip II, King of France, agreed to go on crusade
in 1187 , their plans were disrupted by the rebellion
of Henry II's sons.[50]
Irish
nobles wishing to go on crusade faced political obstacles but so did the
Continental rulers
and this
evidently did not prevent the latter's participationwho journeyed to the
Holy Land. Furthermore,Ireland was a
special case because of its different political system but there is evidence that Irish kings were prepared to
take risks to journey abroad for their faith. This is afforded by Aannalistic
records of pilgrimages by Irish nobles to Rome and the Holy Land in the
eleventh and thirteenth centuries (see Appendix
B).
Looking
at the list of pilgrims, we find three prominent figures, a king of Dublin
(1028), an ex-king of Munster (1064) and a king of Breifne (1231), plus two royal
sons and five minor kings. Four of the ten died whilst on their pilgrimage, a very high proportion.
On the question of the political repercussions of leaving the country, it is
possible to say that Donnchad Ua Briain (1064) had no worries,
whilst both Amlaib (1034) and Aedh Ua Conchubhar Maenmhaighe (1224) had their
interests safeguarded by their fathers. It seems that both Sitric (1028) and
Flaithbertach Ua Neill (1030) appointed their sons as deputies in their
absence.[51] The royal pilgrims who
returned suffered political upsetsseveral
as a result of their absence. Flannacan Ua Cellaig, Tthe King of
Brega,
had accompanied King
Sitric of
Dublin on his pilgrimage in 1028. The annals record that in 1029 another 'King of Brega' captured and held to ransom Amlaib, Sitric's
sonHowever, .[52] and that in 1032 Ua Riagain, King of
Brega, was killed by by Domnall Ua Ceallaigh.[53] This indicates
that the Ua Cellaig family temporarily loss control of their lordship as a
result of Flannacan's absence. Another example is Flaithbertach Ua Neill, who
left for Rome in 1030. The annalistic note that in 1034 'Flaithbertach Ua Neill
took Ailech again'[54] suggests that his absence
on pilgrimage had undermined his rule.
These examples are useful because the
crusades were like armed pilgrimages. The prime motivation of both was
religion. Major crusades were accompanied by non-combatant pilgrims.[55] Both activities required
rulers to leave their lands for long periods and to provide the logistics to
support themselves abroad. Early crusaders were even described by chroniclers
as pilgrims (peregrinus). Thus the
records of Irish royal pilgrimages throw light on the capacity of Irish rulers
to crusade. They indicate that death and political problems were the
difficulties that faced the Irish kings who made the journey to the Holy Land
or Rome. But it did not discourage them. Irish kings were willing and able to
journey abroad for the sake of their Faith. This in turn supports the evidence
we have of an Irish 'itinerant crusade ' some time between 1125 and 1137, and
the reference to Irish participation in the First and Third Crusade.
Irishmen
on crusade in the elventh and twelfth century challenge the idea that Ireland
was isolated from European trends. But if it was possible for Irishmen to go on
crusade and some actually did, why are there so little evidence of Irish
participation? Does this show that
elventh and twelfth century Gaelic Ireland was still distant from the practises
of mainstream Europe?
To
complete the analysis of Irish involvement we must jump forward to the thirteenth
century when crusading was a well-established Eurpoean enterprise.
For
the thirteenth century, the Papal letters referred to already[56] indicate
that word of the crusades reached Gaelic kings and that preaching and fund
raising for the crusades took place in Ireland after 1200.[57] Furthermore , we have our
first references to individual Gaels taking the cross: a Papal letter of
1215x16 reveals that Aed O Mael Eoin, Bishop of Clonmacnoise, took the
crusading vow. This was commuted in return for a contribution to the subsidy
for the Holy Land.[58] The Irish Annals also
note that in
1227[59]
1227
"Dionysius Ua Mordha
was crossed as a crusader from being bishop of Oil-Finn...Cumara Ua Domnallain ,
who was crossed , was killed in captivity..."
and in 1231[60]
1231"Flaihbhertach O'Flannagain ,
dux of the descendents Cathal son of Muiredhach Muillethan , died
in pilgrimage in the monastery of Boyle ,
after having been crossed."
By
the 1220s the experience of crusading had even entered bardic lore, as in the
poem 'Mhuiredhaich, meil do sgin',
written in the Mediterranean by Muiredhach Albanach Ó Dalaigh:[61]
"Protect
us in the hot land,
gentle
Lady Mary."
Gaelic
Ireland evidently participated
in preparations for the Fifth and Sixth Crusades and this is a good example of
what Robert Bartlett describes as '' a massive redeployment of men and
resources " that took place in Europe in 1000-1300 AD, which had the
affect of "...drawing the people and wealth of remote... parts into the
central programmes of Latin Christendom".[62] But by the time of the
Third Crusade, Gaelic Ireland had been invaded by Anglo-Normans and
foreign-ruled lordships were established in the east of the country that owed
allegiance to the crown of England. As a result the growth in Gaelic
involvement in the crusades from that point onward can be interpreted as the
natural outcome of Gaelic Ireland's existing interaction with Europe and the
consequence of new political ties and contacts borne out of Frankish invasion.
Gaelic
Ireland was sufficiently in tune with Latin Europe to involve itself in such
common efforts as the crusades, but it was sufficiently alien from the Frankish
culture that dominated the crusades to be unable to successfully resist when
similar land-hungry knights arrived at its shores, cities and borders in the
twelfth century.
1095 The Council of Clermont and the launch of the First Crusade.
1099 Crusaders capture Jerusalem. Outremer established. Arrival
of
reinforcements from the West.
1144 Fall of Edessa, one of the Crusader states.
1145 Launch of the Second Crusade.
1147 French and German contingents set-out.
1148 End of the Second Crusade in defeat.
1187 Battle of Hattin and the fall of Jerusalem.
Launch of the Third Crusade
1190 Richard I and Philip II set-off on crusade.
1192 Treaty between Richard I and Saladin.
1204 Fourth Crusade directed against
Constantinople.
1213 Preparations for a new crusade begun by the
Papacy.
1218-21
The Fifth Crusade.
1227-29
Frederick II's Crusade.
1026 Mael Ruanaid Ua Mael Darald, King of the
North on his pilgrimage....to Rome (AI).
1028 Sitriuc grandson of Amlaib, King of the Foreigners,
and Flannacan Ua Cellaig, King of Brega, went to Rome (AU).
1030 Flaithbertach Ua Neill went to Rome (AU).
1034 Amlaib son of Sitriuc was killed by the
Saxons on his way to Rome (AU).
1051 Laidcnen son of Maelan, King of Gailenga,
went with his queen to Rome on his pilgrimage and died (AU).
1064 Donnchad, son of Briain
(Boru), went to Rome (AI).
1080 Ua Cinn Fhaelad, King of the Deisi, went to
Jerusalem (AI).
1224 Aedh, son of Conchubhar Maenmhaighe died
while coming from the River [Jordan] and from Jerusalem this year (ALC).
1231 Uaigharg Ua Ruairc, King of Breifne, died in
pilgrimage on the way to the River [Jordan] (ALC).
Key: ALC Annals of Loch Cé, AU
Annals of Ulster, AI Annals of Inisfallen
Primary Sources: Listed
alphabetacally according to title.
Chronicum Alberici Monachi Trium Fontium , in
Accesiones Historicae II , ed. Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz , (1698).
Vita Mariani Scoti , in Acta Sanctorum Feb. ii ,
ed. Bollandus , (1658) , p.361-72.
The Annals of Connaught (A.D
1224-1544)
, ed. A. Martin Freeman , (1944).
The Annals of Inisfallen ,ed. Sean Mac Airt,
(1977).
The Annals of Loch Ce - A Chronicle
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________________________________________________________________
[1] Michael Dolley, Anglo-Norman Ireland (1972), p.1
[2] Dr. W.L Warren 'The interpretation of twelfth century Irish history', in J.C Beckett ed., Historical Studies VII (1969), p.7
[3] Pope Honorius III, 1219, quoted in Robert Barlett, The Making of Europe (1993), p.260
[4] Whitley Stokes ed., Annals of Tigernach Volume II (1993), reprinted from Revue Celtique (1896/97), entry for 1147 A.D
[5] Ekkehard of Aura, Recueil des Historiens des Croisades: Historiens Occidentaux, ed. Academie Royale des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, V (1895) 16A. The nations listed include Aquitaine, Norman, English, Scottish, Irish, Breton, Galician, Gascon, Welsh, Flemish, and Lotharingian.
[6] Fulcher of Chartes, Recueil des Historiens des Croisades: Historiens Occidentaux, ed. Academie Royale des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, III (1866) 337A: "Whoever heard such a number of languages in a single army, when it contained Franks, Flemish, Frisians, Welsh, Allobrogians, Lotharingians, Germans, Bavarians, Normans, English, Irish/Scottish, Aquitanians, Italians, Danes, Iberians, Bretons, Greeks, Armenians?"
[7] Alan MacQuarrie, 'The Crusades and the Scottish Gaidhealtachd in fact and legend', in The Middle Ages in the Highlands, ed. L. Mac Lean , (1981), p.131. This inspiring work provides various examples of evidence for Gaelic involvement in the Crusades.
[8] Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz ed., Chronicon Albrerici monachi Trois Fontium, (Hanover 2698), p.382: "Among these there were many nobles of the Franks...with many other German, English, Burgundians, Italians...and innumerable people from all parts of the whole Christian world hastened to the aid of the few in Syria..."
[9] ibid p.390 "With Richard came one king of Ireland and one of Wales and the Count of Holland..."
[10] M. Prevost ed., Dictionaire De Biographie Francaise Volume IV (1948), p.294
[11] Gerald of Wales, The Journey Thrrough Wales and Description of Wales, ed. Lewis Thorpe (1978), p.77 & 200
[12] D.A Binchy, 'The Irish Benedictine Congregation in Medieval Germany' in Studies 18 (1929), p.194-210; P.A Breatnach 'The origins of the Irish monastic tradition at Ratisbon (Regensburg)' in Celtica 13 (1980), p.58-77
[13] Padraig A. Breatnach ed., Die Regensburger Schottenlegende - Libellus de Fundacione Consecrati Petri (1977), p.240: "There were certain powerful counts from Ireland signed with the Cross and prepared to make their pilgrimage towards Rome and Jerusalem...". See also p.241 & 244.
[14] D.A Binchy, 'The Irish Benedictine Congregation...', p.198
[15] D.A Binchy, 'The Irish Benedictine Congregation...', p.199
[16] P.A Breatnach, 'The origins of the Irish monastic tradition..', p.72-73
[17] Jean-Michael Picard ed., The Vision of Tnugdal (1989), p.143, 144-145, 155
[18] Picard ed., The Vision of Tnugdal..., p.143
[19] Biblioteca Apostolica varicana Rome Lat. 10100: Necrology St. James of Wurzburg; Available in the N.L.I: Neg. 2865, Pos. 1975. For a discussion of the necrologies contents see Dagmar O'Riain-Raedel, 'Irish kings and bishops in the memoria of the German Schottenkloster' in Irland und Europa: the Early Church, ed. Michael Richter (1984), p.390-404
[20] Dagmar O'Riain-Raedel, 'Irish kings and bishops...', p.391
[21] 'Frater Noster, Our brother', Dagmar O'Riain-Raedel, 'Irish kings and bishops...', p.399, note 15
[22] Because the gifts the Irish nobles presented to the Schottenkloster may have warranted inclusion of their bearers in the necrology, we may be able to associate the "comites crucesignati de Hybernia " with three 'comites Hibernia ' mentioned in the Necrology of St. James; They are Donnchadh (Dunchang), Domnall (Donellus), and Ruaidhri (Rodezicks). See necrology entries for March, October and December. The twelfth-century slant of the necrology makes this an interesting possibility.
[23] Hans-Eberhard Mayer, The Crusades (1988), p.60, 64-65
[24] Mayer, The Crusades, p.68, 89; Alan MacQuarrie, Scotland and the Crusades (1985), p.13-14, 20-21. See Johnathon-Riley Smith, The Crusades (1987), p.89, and K.M Setton ed., A History of the Crusades, Volume II (1969), p.45
[25] J.A Watt, The Church and the Two Nations in Medieval Ireland (1970), p.1-34
[26] For Muirchertach Ua Briain see Anthony Candon, 'Barefaced effrontery: secular and ecclesiastical politics in early twelfth century Ireland' in Seanchas Ard Macha 14 (1990-91), p.1-25. For Ua Cerbill see Marie Therese Flanagan, 'St. Mary's Louth and the introduction of the Arroasian observance into Ireland' in Clogher Record 10 (1979-81), p.223-33
[27] Annals of Tigernach 1123; the holy relic was encased in the purpose-built Cross of Cong
[28] F.X Martin, A New History of Ireland Volume II, ed. Art Cosgrove (1987), p.54-55
[29] F.X Martin A New History..., p.49
[30] Dagmar O'Riain-Raedel, 'Irish kings and bishops...', p.400
[31] See for example Michael Richter, 'The European dimension of Irish history in the elventh and twelfth centuries' in Perita 4 (1985), p.328-345
[32] Annals of Tigernach 1147. See also Chronicum Scotorum 1147, ed. William M. Hennessy, (1866).
[33] Donnchad O'Corrain, 'Mael Muire Ua Dunain (1040-1117), Reformer' in Folia Gadelica, ed. Padraig de Brun (1983), p.47-53; Marie Therese Flanagan, 'Hiberno-Papal relations in the late twelfth century' in Archivium Hibernicum 34 (1976-77), p.55-70
[34] J.A Watt, The Church and the Two Nations...; Aubry Gwynn, 'Ireland and the Continent in the elventh century' in Irish Historical Studies 8 (1953), p.197
[35] Maurice P. Sheehy ed., Pontificia Hibernica Volume I, Letter No. 42-44, 75-77, 107, 116, 149; Rev. P.J Dunning, 'The letters of Innocent III to Ireland', in Archivium Hibernicum Volume XIII (1947), p.37
[36] Sheehy, Pontificia Hibernica, Letter No. 77: regi Corkaie (MacCarthy), Lumbricensi (Ua Briain), Connactie (Ua Conchubhar) and Mindiensi (Meath: Ua Mael Sechlainn or Ua Ruairc?)
[37] Aubry Gwynn and R.N Hadcock, Medieval Religious Houses, Ireland (1970), p.114-117
[38] F.X Martin, No Hero in the House - Diarmait Mac Murchada and the Coming of the Normans to Ireland, 19th O'Donnell Lecture (1975), p.19
[39] Riley-Smith, The Crusades, p.94-95; Mayer, The Crusades, p.91-98
[40] St. Bernard's Letter to the English, in Mayer, The Crusades, p.97
[41] Mayer, The Crusades, p.96
[42] Rev.
P. J Dunning , 'The letters of Innocent III to Ireland' in Traditio,
xviii (1962), p.244; M.P Sheehy, Pontificia Hibernica, Letter No.
76. The appointment was made in 1213.
[43] AnnaIs of Inisfallen 1124, 1125, 1127; N.H.I Vol. II, p.32-33
[44] For evidence of pre-1169 English trade see Geraldus Cambrensis, Expugnatio Hibernica, ed. F.X Martin (1978), p.71; Anthony Candon, 'Muirchertach Ua Briain, politics, naval activity and the Irish Sea, 1075-119' in G. MacNiocaill ed., Keimelia (1988), p398; Aubry Gwynn, 'Medieval Bristol and Dublin' in Irish Historical Studies 5 (1946-7), p.277-78. See also Richter, 'The European dimension...', p.338-9
[45] N.H.I Voll II, p.32, 33, 38; Richter, 'The European dimension...', p.341-2
[46] Riley-Smith, The Crusades, p.12-14; Setton, A History of the Crusades, p.255; Christopher Tyerman, England and the Crusades (1988), p.172, 188
[47] Michael Dolley, 'Coinage to 1534: the sign of the times', N.H.I Volume II, p.816-18
[48] Riley-Smith, The Crusades, p.95; Steven Runciman, A History of the Crusades Volume II (1962), p.255
[49] Geraldus Cambrensis, Expugnatio Hibernica, p.203
[50] Geraldus Cambrensis, Expugnatio Hibernica, p209
[51] Annals of Loch C¾ 1029; James Hogan, 'The Irish law of kingship, with special reference to Ailch and Cenel Eoghain' in Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 40 (1932), p.208-9.
[52] Annals of Loch C¾ 1029
[53] Annals of Loch C¾ 1032
[54] Annals of Inisfallen 1034
[55] Setton, A History of the Crusades, p.465; see also Tyerman, England and the Crusades,p.27
[56] Omitted note 76 in print out
[57] See above section on communications for Papal crusading activity in Ireland.
[58] Dunning, 'The letters of Innocent III to Ireland...', p.37
[59] Annals of Ulster 1227
[60] Annals of Loch C¾ 1231
[61] Quoted in MacQuarrie, 'The Crusades and the Scottish Gaidhealtachd...', p.136. A number of poems composed by Muiredhach and his Scottish companions are quoted therein.
[62] Barlett, The Making of Europe, p.268