The
Battle of Scacafell or
Skyhill took place about one mile (1.5 km) west of
RamseyRamsey is a town in the north of the Isle of Man. It is the second largest town on the island after Douglas. Its population is 7,309 according to the 2006 census . It has one of the biggest harbours on the island, and has a prominent derelict pier, called the Queen's Pier. It was formerly one of...
,
Isle of ManThe Isle of Man , or Mann , is a self-governing British Crown dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Britain and Ireland. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Crown is represented by a Lieutenant Governor...
in 1079. It was the third and final time that the Norse-Gael warrior
Godred CrovanGodred Crovan was a Norse-Gael ruler of Dublin, and King of Mann and the Isles in the second half of the 11th century. Godred's epithet Crovan may mean "white hand"...
invaded the island, taking it from
DublinDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
and Orkney. His victory over the
ManxThe Manx are an ethnic group coming from the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea in northern Europe. They are often described as a Celtic people, though they have had a mixed background including Norse and English influences.-Make-up of Isle of Man population:...
brought together the Isle of Man and the
HebridesThe Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides...
, establishing the
Kingdom of Mann and the IslesThe Kingdom of Mann and the Isles was a Norse kingdom that existed in the British Isles between 1079 and 1266.The Kingdom had two parts, Sodor , or the South Isles , and Norðr , or the North Isles ....
.
At the time of the battle, the Isle of Man was part of a larger political entity called the Kingdom of the Sudreys, which consisted of Mann and the Hebrides.
The
Battle of Scacafell or
Skyhill took place about one mile (1.5 km) west of
RamseyRamsey is a town in the north of the Isle of Man. It is the second largest town on the island after Douglas. Its population is 7,309 according to the 2006 census . It has one of the biggest harbours on the island, and has a prominent derelict pier, called the Queen's Pier. It was formerly one of...
,
Isle of ManThe Isle of Man , or Mann , is a self-governing British Crown dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Britain and Ireland. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Crown is represented by a Lieutenant Governor...
in 1079. It was the third and final time that the Norse-Gael warrior
Godred CrovanGodred Crovan was a Norse-Gael ruler of Dublin, and King of Mann and the Isles in the second half of the 11th century. Godred's epithet Crovan may mean "white hand"...
invaded the island, taking it from
DublinDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
and Orkney. His victory over the
ManxThe Manx are an ethnic group coming from the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea in northern Europe. They are often described as a Celtic people, though they have had a mixed background including Norse and English influences.-Make-up of Isle of Man population:...
brought together the Isle of Man and the
HebridesThe Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides...
, establishing the
Kingdom of Mann and the IslesThe Kingdom of Mann and the Isles was a Norse kingdom that existed in the British Isles between 1079 and 1266.The Kingdom had two parts, Sodor , or the South Isles , and Norðr , or the North Isles ....
.
At the time of the battle, the Isle of Man was part of a larger political entity called the Kingdom of the Sudreys, which consisted of Mann and the Hebrides. Godred's father, Harald the Black, was king from c.1035-1040, but on his death the kingdom appears to have come under the control of the Earls of Orkney. When their control over the islands lapsed around 1049, the throne passed to a distant relation of Harald the Black,
Sigtrygg"Sigtrygg" is a Norwegian name; in Ireland rendered as Sitric. The names may refer to any of the following people:*Sitric the Dane, founder of Waterford*Sigtrygg of Nerike, a Swede who met Saint Olaf...
, whose brother was King of Dublin. His son, Godred II, who reigned until 1075, succeeded Sigtrygg.
In 1075 Godred II died and the throne was passed to Fingall, but he does not seem to have remained there long. In 1075, Godred Crovan assembled a fleet and an army, probably of Norsemen from the Hebrides, and attacked the island. He was repulsed, but was soon back for a second attempt. Again he was repulsed, but during this period Fingall disappears from the record, and it is probable that he was killed during one of the invasion attempts. In 1079 Godred Crovan came back, and the chronicles are reasonably clear as to what happened next:
A third time he gathered a massive force and came by night to the harbour which is called Ramsey, and three hundred men he hid in a wood which was on the sloping brow of the mountain called Sky Hill. At dawn the Manxmen formed up in battle order and after a massive charge joined battle with Godred. When the battle was raging vehemently, the three hundred rose from their place of hiding at their rear and began to weaken the resistance of the Manxmen and compelled them to flee. Now when they saw themselves defeated without any place for them to escape to, for the tide had filled the riverbed at Ramsey and the enemy were pressing constantly from the other side, those that were left begged Godred with pitiful cries to spare them their lives. Moved with compassion and taking pity on their plight, since he had been reared among them for some time, he called off his army and forbade them to pursue them further.
- — Chronica Regum Manniae et Insularum (The Chronicles of the Kings of Man and the Isles)
It has been suggested that Fingall died at this battle, but the otherwise detailed account neglects to mention this.