Irish Timeline, AD 600-800
This timeline includes all significant events in Ireland , Scottish Dalriada, and the Irish abroad. The main sources are Byrne and Doherty, 1982; Byrne, 1973, O'Croinin, 1995, Marsden, 1993 &1995, plus direct annal enteries.
Abbreviations: Annales Cambriae, AC; Annales of Ulster, AU; Annales of Tigernach, AT; Annales of Clonmacnoise, ACl; Annales of the Four Masters, AFM; Annales of Inisfallen, AI; Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, ASC.
603-- Aethylfrith, King of Bernicia defeated Aeddan of Dalriada at Degastan; St. Columbanus refuses to attend the Council of Chalons (AU, 600)
604-- The joint High-Kings of Tara, Coman Rimid and Aed Slaine and Aed Roin, King of Ui Failgi are assassinated.
605-617-- Archbishop Laurentius writes to the British and Irish over their nonconformaty to the Roman Easter calculations and other customs.
c608--Aeddan son of Gabran of Dalriada dies, ascension of his son Eochaid Find as king may have preceeded his death.
610--King Theodoric II of Burgundy banishes St. Columbanus but he is welcomed by King Clothar II of Neustria
612--St. Columbanus is welcomed in Lombardy by King Agiluf, St. Gall was left behind in Bregenz to become a leader in the Swiss church; Death of St. Kentigern, Bishop of Glasgow and King Rydderch Hael of Strathclyde
615--Columbanus dies in Itlay at Bobbio
616--Æthelfrith kills Selyf ap Cynan of Powys and massacres the monks of Bangor who came to pray at the Battle of Chester.
617--Rædwald of East Anglia defeats and killes Æthelfrith of Northumbria by the River Idle; Rædwald places Edwin of Deiria on the throne of Northumrbria.
617-633--Oswald, Oswy, and St. Ebba, children of Aethylfrith of Northumbria ,are in exile on Iona. Some of the many sons of Æthelfrith fight in Ireland during this period.
618--Red Martyrdom of Donnan on the isle of Eigg
620s--Oswy, son of Aethylfirth, and Fina daughter of Colman Rimid King of Ui Neill have a son, Aldfrith also known as Fland Fina.
625--Mongan son of Fiachnae mac Beatain, King of Ulster, killed on Kintyre by Artuir the Briton of Strathcylde(?).(AT)
625-33--First mission to Northumrbria by Paulinus
627/9-- King Failbe Fland of Cashel defeats Guaire Aidni of Connacht at the Battle of Carn Feradaid
628/9-- Pope Honorius addresses the Irish over the Easter Controversy.[Bede, 634]
c630-50--Cogitosus's Vita Brigitae , the first hagiography
c630-- Edwin of Northumbria invades Angelsey and Bede also claims the Ise of Man. St. Fursey leaves Ireland for East Anglia where he founds Cnobesburh
630-- Southern Ireland conforms to Roman church practices at teh Synod of Mag Lene but sends a mission to Rome over the Easter calculations in 63
632--Cadwallon flees to Ireland in exile (The Welsh triads would date this event to c626); Cummians paschel letter to Segene of Iona in which he urges Iona to accept the Roman Easter. Cummain refers to St. Patrick as papa noster.
632/3--Cadwallon of Gwynedd and Penda of Mercia kill Edwin of Northumbria at the battle of Hatfield Chase.
633--Faelan mac Colman becomes King of Leinster ; he is an ancestor of the Ui Dunalige dynasty
634--Cadwallon rules Northumbria for one year and then is killed by Oswald son of Æthelfirth at the battle near Hexham.
635-51--St. Aiden of Iona establishes Lindisfarne and the Northumbrian mission.
636--Lismore is founded by St. Carthach after he is expelled from Rathen
637/9--High King Domnall mac Aedo of the Ui Neill defeated a combined army from the Ulaid and Dalriata at the Battle of Mag Rath. Congal Cloe, King of Ulster and rival for the Kingship of Tara is killed, Domnall Brecc of Dalriada escapes.
638--The Arabs take Jerusalem.
639-- Leinster King Faelan mac Colmain's brother, Aed Dub, abbot and bishop of Kildare dies.
640--Pope -elect John IV writes to the Irish about the Easter Controversy and Pelagianism.[Bede]
c640--Ita and Gertrude, widow of Pepin the Elder of France, found the Nivelles, a double monastary on the Irish style.
c640-44--St. Fursey founds Lagny in Frankia after his departure form East Anglia.
642--Domnall mac Aedo 'King of Ireland' died peacefully at the end of January. Domnall Brecc of Dalriada was slain by Owain mac Beli of Strathclyde at the battle of Strathcarron in December.
649-- Diarmait mac Aedo Slaine was defeated by Guaire Aidni, King of Connacht at the Battle of Carn Conaill.
649/50--Death of St. Fursey and his burial at Peronne (Peronna Scottorum, Picardy France). He was buried by Erchinoald the founder of Peronne and mayor of the palace of Neustria.
c650-- Penda of Mercia invades East Anglia and slays King Anna, Cnobesburh monastary is destroyed and St. Foillan, brother of St. Fursey, flees with the remainder of the community to Peronne, France to join Fursey.
c652--St. Follian and Ita of Nivelles with the patronage of ItaÕs brother Grimoald, mayor of the palace of Austriasis, founds the monastary of Fosses.
652--Death of Manchianus (Manchene), Abbot of Min Droichet, a scholar . The church of St. Finan was built at Lindisfarne.
656--Sigeberht III of Austriasia dies, Grimoald places his son on the throne as Chlidebert III. Sigiberht's son Dagobert was sent to Ireland by Bishop Desiderius of Pointiers.
661--The scholar Laidcenn mac Baith Bannaig dies.
664--Synod of Whitby between the Celtic and Roman (Gaulic) church. Lindisfarne turns toward the Roman church for guidence. Bishop Colman of Lindisfarne leaves with many Irish and Saxons who refuse accept Roman traditions.
664-8--A Great Plague in Ireland and Britain
668--Foundation of Inishbofin by Colman formerly of Lindisfarne. Within a short period, the Saxons with Colman split off and found the monastary of 'Mayo of the Saxons'under St. Garalt (d. 732).
c668-730--Irish goverment changes from tribal to dynastic.
669-90--Theodore of Tarsus, Archbishop of Canterbury
669--Cummine Find (Commeneus Albus), abbot of Iona and author of the Liber de virtuibus Columbae; dies; St. Chad becomes the first Bishop of Mercia.
670-c690--Irish primacy is established at Armagh adn the first works on St. Patrick are written
672-- Archbishop Theodore legislates against the irregular practices of the Celtic church in England at the Synod of Hereford in the English midlands; Foundation of Applecross by Maelrubai in western Pictland
675-95--Baile Chuind, the first king list of Tara is composed during the reign of Finsnechtae Fledach
676--Wilfred Bishop of York brings Dagobert son of Sigebert from Ireland and has him succeed as King of Austriasia as Dagobert II. Dagobert is murdered three years later.
678--The scholar Cenn Faelad dies.
679-704 --Adoman, Abbot of Iona
c680-- Primacy of Armagh is recognized by Bishop Aed of Sletty
682--British invade northern Ireland in Antrim and defeat the Dal nAridid Cruithin at the battle of Raith Mor Maige Line
683-5--Palgue ravages Ireland for three years.
684--Ecgfrith's Northurmbrians invade Brega, Ireland.
685--Battle of Dunnichen/ Llyn Garan where Breidi mac Beli, High Kign of Picts, defeated and slew Ecgfrith son of Oswy of Northumbria. Breidi becomes the northern overlord.
685/6--First visit of Abbot Adomnan of Iona to King Aldfrith son of Oswy of Northumbria.
686--Banban the scholar of Kildare dies.
686--Adomnan visits Aldfrith of Northumbria and ransoms Irish captives from the invasion of Brega in 684; Adomnan dedicates his De locis sanctis to Aldfrith
687--Pepin becomes the mayor of the palace of all Francia after the battle of Tertry; Carolinian era begins in ernest
689-- St. Kilian is martyred by the Germans at Wurzburg
696/7-- Synod of Birr attended by Adomnan of Iona. Cain Adomnan decreeded which protected non-combatants from the brutality of war. The synod in general accepts Roman Easter; Britons and Ulaid devisate Mag Muirthemne
698--Dynastic conflicts in the Airgialla lead to the battle of Telech Garraisc in Fernmag (Co. Monaghan). King Conchobar Machae of the Airthir and King Aed Airdd of the Dal nAraidi are killed.
698-700--Three years of famine and plague, rumors of cannibalism spread.
699--Cattle palgue in Britain which spreads to Ireland at Tethbae in 700.
702--King Irgalach ua Conaing of Brega was killed by British raiders at Ireland's Eye.
703--British raiders are defeated by the Ulaid at Ards penisula.
704--Death of Adamnan of Iona; Connacht invades the midlands and kills Loingsech mac Oengusso 'King of Ireland'
709--Ui Chennselaig (of South Leinster?) with British mercenaries defeat King Cellach Cualann of Leinster; Death of Bishop Aldhelm of Sherborne ; A plague called baccach (poliomyelitis?) with dysentary in Ireland
c710-- Pictish King Nechtan accepts Roman Easter
710-22--Fergal mac Maele Duin, High King; Cenel nEogain of the Ui Neill becomes dominant in the north.
713--Abbot Dorbbene of Iona dies after 5 months as abbot. He is the scribe of the Schaffhausen MS of Adomnan's Vita Columbae
715--Ui Dunlainge and Ui Chennsealaig contest Leinster kingship on the death of King Cellach Cualann of Leinster
716--Iona accepts Roman Easter with the encouragement of the English Egberht.
717 --The Irish clergy are expelled from Pictland by King Nechtan
721-- In alliance,King Cathal mac Finguine of Cashal and King Murchad mac Brain of Leinster ravage the Ui Neill of Brega.
722--High-King Fergal mac Maele Duin is killed by the Laign at the battle of Almu
727--Renewal of Cain Adomnan
729--Egberht the Englishman dies on Iona
733--Cathal mac Finguine of Cashal drives into the midlands as far as Teltown in Meath
734--Aed Allan mac Fergaile of Cenel nEogain defeated and deposed High King Flaithbertach mac Loingsig, the last Cenel nConaill High King. A fleet from Dalraida fought for Flaithbertach; the relics of Sts. Peter, Paul, and Patrick are taken on a circuit of Ireland to establish Armagh's primacy
734-43-- Pictish King Oengus mac Forgusso ravages Dalriada
735--Aed Allan, High King of Tara (734-43), defeats the Ulaid at the battle of Fochairt ; King Cathal mac Finguine of Cashal is defeated by Leinster at the battle of Belach Eile; death of Bede.
737--All Ireland recognizes the primacy of Armagh
738--Aed Allan defeats the Laigin at the battle of Uchbad (Ballyshannon, Co. Kildare); King Aed mac Colggen and many sub-kings of Leinster are killed
739-1042--Ui Dunlaige hold the kingship of Leinster
c740--Annals of Iona end
742-3--Smallpox outbreaks
743--Aed Allan is killed by Domnall Midi of Clann Cholmain at the battle of Seredmag
760--'Battle between monastaries of Clonmacnoise and Birr'
764--'Battle between monastaries of Clonmacnoise and Durrow'
795--First Viking Raids on Ireland