Malcolm II of Scotland
Encyclopedia
Máel Coluim mac Cináeda (Modern Gaelic
: Maol Chaluim mac Choinnich, known in modern anglicized regnal lists as Malcolm II; died 25 November 1034), was King of the Scots from 1005 until his death. He was a son of Cináed mac Maíl Coluim; the Prophecy of Berchán
says that his mother was a woman of Leinster
and refers to him as Máel Coluim Forranach, "the destroyer".
To the Irish annals
which recorded his death, Máel Coluim was ard rí
Alban, High King
of Scotland. In the same way that Brian Bóruma, High King of Ireland
, was not the only king in Ireland
, Máel Coluim was one of several kings within the geographical boundaries of modern Scotland
: his fellow kings included the king of Strathclyde, who ruled much of the south-west, various Norse-Gael kings of the western coasts and the Hebrides
and, nearest and most dangerous rivals, the Kings or Mormaers of Moray. To the south, in the Kingdom of England
, the Earls of Bernicia
and Northumbria
, whose predecessors as kings of Northumbria had once ruled most of southern Scotland, still controlled large parts of the south-east.
in Strathearn
.
John of Fordun
writes that Máel Coluim defeated a Norwegian
army "in almost the first days after his coronation", but this is not reported elsewhere. Fordun says that the Bishopric of Mortlach
(later moved to Aberdeen
) was founded in thanks for this victory over the Norwegians.
to Crinan
, Thane of The Isles, head of the house of Atholl and secular Abbot of Dunkeld; then his youngest daughter, Olith, to Sigurd, Earl of Orkney. His middle daughter, Donada, was married to Findláich, Mormaer of Moray
, Thane of Ross and Cromarty and a descendant of Loarn of Dalriada
. This was risky business under the rules of succession of the Gael, but he thereby secured his rear and, taking advantage of the renewal of Viking attacks on England, marched south to fight the English. He defeated the Angles at Carham
in 1018 and installed his grandson, Duncan, son of the Abbot of Dunkeld and his choice as Tanist, in Carlisle as King of Cumbria that same year.
in 1006, perhaps the customary crech ríg (literally royal prey, a raid by a new king made to demonstrate prowess in war), which involved a siege
of Durham
. This appears to have resulted in a heavy defeat by the Northumbrians, led by Uhtred of Bamburgh, later Earl of Bernicia, which is reported by the Annals of Ulster
.
A second war in Bernicia, probably in 1018, was more successful. The Battle of Carham
, by the River Tweed
, was a victory for the Scots led by Máel Coluim and the men of Strathclyde led by their king, Owen the Bald. By this time Earl Uchtred may have been dead, and Eiríkr Hákonarson
was appointed Earl of Northumbria by his brother-in-law Cnut the Great, although his authority seems to have been limited to the south, the former kingdom of Deira, and he took no action against the Scots so far as is known. The work De obsessione Dunelmi
(The siege of Durham, associated with Symeon of Durham
) claims that Uchtred's brother Eadwulf Cudel surrendered Lothian
to Máel Coluim, presumably in the aftermath of the defeat at Carham. This is likely to have been the lands between Dunbar
and the Tweed as other parts of Lothian had been under Scots control before this time. It has been suggested that Cnut received tribute from the Scots for Lothian, but as he had likely received none from the Bernician Earls this is not very probable.
, led an army into Scotland on his return from pilgrimage
to Rome
. The Chronicle dates this to 1031, but there are reasons to suppose that it should be dated to 1027. Burgundian
chronicler Rodulfus Glaber
recounts the expedition soon afterwards, describing Máel Coluim as "powerful in resources and arms ... very Christian in faith and deed." Ralph claims that peace was made between Máel Coluim and Cnut through the intervention of Richard
, Duke of Normandy
, brother of Cnut's wife Emma
. Richard died in about 1027 and Rodulfus wrote close in time to the events.
It has been suggested that the root of the quarrel between Cnut and Máel Coluim lies in Cnut's pilgrimage to Rome, and the coronation of Holy Roman Emperor
Conrad II
, where Cnut and Rudolph III
, King of Burgundy
had the place of honour. If Máel Coluim were present, and the repeated mentions of his piety in the annals make it quite possible that he made a pilgrimage to Rome, as did Mac Bethad mac Findláich ("Macbeth") in later times, then the coronation would have allowed Máel Coluim to publicly snub Cnut's claims to overlordship.
Cnut obtained rather less than previous English kings, a promise of peace and friendship rather than the promise of aid on land and sea that Edgar
and others had obtained. The sources say that Máel Coluim was accompanied by one or two other kings, certainly Mac Bethad, and perhaps Echmarcach mac Ragnaill
, King of Mann and the Isles, and of Galloway
. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle remarks of the submission "but he [Máel Coluim] adhered to that for only a little while". Cnut was soon occupied in Norway
against Olaf Haraldsson and appears to have had no further involvement with Scotland.
. Their son Thorfinn Sigurdsson was said to be five years old when Sigurd was killed on 23 April 1014 in the Battle of Clontarf
. The Orkneyinga Saga
says that Thorfinn was raised at Máel Coluim's court and was given the Mormaerdom of Caithness
by his grandfather. Thorfinn, says the Heimskringla
, was the ally of the king of Scots, and counted on Máel Coluim's support to resist the "tyranny" of Norwegian King Olaf Haraldsson. The chronology of Thorfinn's life is problematic, and he may have had a share in the Earldom of Orkney while still a child, if he was indeed only five in 1014. Whatever the exact chronology, before Máel Coluim's death a client of the king of Scots was in control of Caithness and Orkney, although, as with all such relationships, it is unlikely to have lasted beyond his death.
If Máel Coluim exercised control over Moray, which is far from being generally accepted, then the annals record a number of events pointing to a struggle for power in the north. In 1020, Mac Bethad's father Findláech mac Ruaidrí was killed by the sons of his brother Máel Brigte. It seems that Máel Coluim mac Máil Brigti took control of Moray, for his death is reported in 1029.
Despite the accounts of the Irish annals, English and Scandinavian writers appear to see Mac Bethad as the rightful king of Moray: this is clear from their descriptions of the meeting with Cnut in 1027, before the death of Máel Coluim mac Máil Brigti. Máel Coluim was followed as king or mormaer by his brother Gille Coemgáin
, husband of Gruoch, a granddaughter of King Cináed III. It has been supposed that Mac Bethad was responsible for the killing of Gille Coemgáin in 1032, but if Mac Bethad had a cause for feud in the killing of his father in 1020, Máel Coluim too had reason to see Gille Coemgáin dead. Not only had Gille Coemgáin's ancestors killed many of Máel Coluim's kin, but Gille Coemgáin and his son Lulach might be rivals for the throne. Máel Coluim had no living sons, and the threat to his plans for the succession was obvious. As a result, the following year Gruoch's brother or nephew, who might have eventually become king, was killed by Máel Coluim.
sent Earl Siward to install "Máel Coluim son of the king of the Cumbrians". The confusion is old, probably inspired by William of Malmesbury
and embellished by John of Fordun, but there is no firm evidence that the kingdom of Strathclyde was a part of the kingdom of the Scots, rather than a loosely subjected kingdom, before the time of Máel Coluim II of Scotland's great-grandson Máel Coluim mac Donnchada.
By the 1030s Máel Coluim's sons, if he had any, were dead. The only evidence that he did have a son or sons is in Rodulfus Glaber's chronicle where Cnut is said to have stood as godfather to a son of Máel Coluim. His grandson Thorfinn would have been unlikely to accepted as king by the Scots, and he chose the sons of his other daughter, Bethóc
, who was married to Crínán
, lay abbot
of Dunkeld
, and perhaps Mormaer of Atholl. It may be no more than coincidence, but in 1027 the Irish annals had reported the burning of Dunkeld, although no mention is made of the circumstances. Máel Coluim's chosen heir, and the first tánaise ríg certainly known in Scotland, was Donnchad mac Crínáin ("Duncan I").
It is possible that a third daughter of Máel Coluim married Findláech mac Ruaidrí and that Mac Bethad was thus his grandson, but this rests on relatively weak evidence.
giving the date as 25 November 1034. The king lists say that he died at Glamis
, variously describing him as a "most glorious" or "most victorious" king. The Annals of Tigernach report that "Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, king of Scotland, the honour of all the west of Europe, died." The Prophecy of Berchán, perhaps the inspiration for John of Fordun and Andrew of Wyntoun
's accounts where Máel Coluim is killed fighting bandits, says that he died by violence, fighting "the parricides", suggested to be the sons of Máel Brigte of Moray.
Perhaps the most notable feature of Máel Coluim's death is the account of Marianus, matched by the silence of the Irish annals, which tells us that Donnchad I became king and ruled for five years and nine months. Given that his death in 1040 is described as being "at an immature age" in the Annals of Tigernach, he must have been a young man in 1034. The absence of any opposition suggests that Máel Coluim had dealt thoroughly with any likely opposition in his own lifetime.
Tradition, dating from Fordun's time if not earlier, knew the Pictish stone now called "Glamis 2" as "King Malcolm's grave stone". The stone is a Class II stone, apparently formed by re-using a Bronze Age
standing stone. Its dating is uncertain, with dates from the 8th century onwards having been proposed. While an earlier date is favoured, an association with accounts of Máel Coluim's has been proposed on the basis of the iconography of the carvings.
On the question of Máel Coluim's putative pilgrimage, pilgrimages to Rome, or other long-distance journeys, were far from unusual. Thorfinn Sigurdsson, Cnut and Mac Bethad have already been mentioned. Rognvald Kali Kolsson is known to have gone crusading in the Mediterranean in the 12th century. Nearer in time, Dyfnwal of Strathclyde died on pilgrimage to Rome in 975 as did Máel Ruanaid uá Máele Doraid, King of the Cenél Conaill
, in 1025.
Not a great deal is known of Máel Coluim's activities beyond the wars and killings. The Book of Deer
records that Máel Coluim "gave a king's dues in Biffie and in Pett Meic-Gobraig, and two davochs" to the monastery of Old Deer
. He was also probably not the founder of the Bishopric of Mortlach-Aberdeen. John of Fordun has a peculiar tale to tell, related to the supposed "Laws of Malcolm MacKenneth", saying that Máel Coluim gave away all of Scotland, except for the Moot Hill at Scone, which is unlikely to have any basis in fact.
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
: Maol Chaluim mac Choinnich, known in modern anglicized regnal lists as Malcolm II; died 25 November 1034), was King of the Scots from 1005 until his death. He was a son of Cináed mac Maíl Coluim; the Prophecy of Berchán
Prophecy of Berchán
The Prophecy of Berchán, is a relatively large historical poem written in the Middle Irish language. The text is preserved in the Royal Irish Academy, as MS 679 , with a few early modern copies...
says that his mother was a woman of Leinster
Leinster
Leinster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the east of Ireland. It comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Mide, Osraige and Leinster. Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the historic fifths of Leinster and Mide gradually merged, mainly due to the impact of the Pale, which straddled...
and refers to him as Máel Coluim Forranach, "the destroyer".
To the Irish annals
Irish annals
A number of Irish annals were compiled up to and shortly after the end of Gaelic Ireland in the 17th century.Annals were originally a means by which monks determined the yearly chronology of feast days...
which recorded his death, Máel Coluim was ard rí
Rí
Rí, or very commonly ríg , is an ancient Gaelic word meaning "King". It is used in historical texts referring to the Irish and Scottish kings and those of similar rank. While the modern Irish word is exactly the same, in modern Scottish it is Rìgh, apparently derived from the genitive. The word...
Alban, High King
High king
A high king is a king who holds a position of seniority over a group of other kings, without the title of Emperor; compare King of Kings.Rulers who have been termed "high king" include:...
of Scotland. In the same way that Brian Bóruma, High King of Ireland
High King of Ireland
The High Kings of Ireland were sometimes historical and sometimes legendary figures who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over the whole of Ireland. Medieval and early modern Irish literature portrays an almost unbroken sequence of High Kings, ruling from Tara over a hierarchy of...
, was not the only king in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Máel Coluim was one of several kings within the geographical boundaries of modern Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
: his fellow kings included the king of Strathclyde, who ruled much of the south-west, various Norse-Gael kings of the western coasts and the Hebrides
Hebrides
The Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides. These islands have a long history of occupation dating back to the Mesolithic and the culture of the residents has been affected by the successive...
and, nearest and most dangerous rivals, the Kings or Mormaers of Moray. To the south, in the Kingdom of England
Kingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
, the Earls of Bernicia
Bernicia
Bernicia was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England....
and Northumbria
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
, whose predecessors as kings of Northumbria had once ruled most of southern Scotland, still controlled large parts of the south-east.
Early years
In 997, the killer of Causantín mac Cuilén is credited as being Cináed mac Maíl Coluim. Since there is no known and relevant Cináed alive at that time (Cináed mac Maíl Coluim having died in 995), it is considered an error for either Cináed mac Duib, who succeeded Causantín, or, possibly, Máel Coluim himself, the son of Cináed II. Whether Máel Coluim killed Causantín or not, there is no doubt that in 1005 he killed Causantín's successor Cináed III in battle at MonzievairdMonzievaird
Monzievaird is situated two miles west of Crieff in Highland Perthshire, Scotland.It was originally named Muithauard c.1200, Moneward 1203. The name is derived from the Gaelic magh + bard; Plain of the bards. ....
in Strathearn
Strathearn
Strathearn or Strath Earn is the strath of the River Earn, in Scotland. It extends from Loch Earn in Perth and Kinross to the River Tay....
.
John of Fordun
John of Fordun
John of Fordun was a Scottish chronicler. It is generally stated that he was born at Fordoun, Mearns. It is certain that he was a secular priest, and that he composed his history in the latter part of the 14th century; and it is probable that he was a chaplain in the St Machar's Cathedral of...
writes that Máel Coluim defeated a Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
army "in almost the first days after his coronation", but this is not reported elsewhere. Fordun says that the Bishopric of Mortlach
Diocese of Aberdeen
Diocese of Aberdeen was one of the 13 dioceses of the Scottish church, before the abolition of the episcopacy in 1689.-Early history:...
(later moved to Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
) was founded in thanks for this victory over the Norwegians.
Children
Malcolm II demonstrated a rare ability to survive among early Scottish kings by reigning for twenty-nine years. He was a clever and ambitious man. Brehon tradition provided that the successor to Malcolm was to be selected by him from among the descendants of King Aedh, with the consent of Malcolm’s ministers and of the church. Ostensibly in an attempt to end the devastating feuds in the north of Scotland, but obviously influenced by the Norman feudal model, Malcolm ignored tradition and determined to retain the succession within his own line. But since Malcolm had no son of his own, he undertook to negotiate a series of dynastic marriages of his three daughters to men who might otherwise be his rivals, while securing the loyalty of the principal chiefs, their relatives. First he married his daughter BethocBethóc
Bethóc ingen Maíl Coluim meic Cináeda was the eldest daughter of King Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots, who had no known sons.The strongest hereditary claim of succession to the Scottish throne therefore passed through Bethóc. Princess Bethóc married Crínán, Abbot of Dunkeld. The first son of...
to Crinan
Crínán of Dunkeld
Crínán of Dunkeld was the lay abbot of the diocese of Dunkeld, and perhaps the Mormaer of Atholl. Crínán was progenitor of the House of Dunkeld, the dynasty which would rule Scotland until the later 13th century....
, Thane of The Isles, head of the house of Atholl and secular Abbot of Dunkeld; then his youngest daughter, Olith, to Sigurd, Earl of Orkney. His middle daughter, Donada, was married to Findláich, Mormaer of Moray
Findláech of Moray
Findláech of Moray was the King or Mormaer of Moray, ruling from some point before 1014 until his death in 1020....
, Thane of Ross and Cromarty and a descendant of Loarn of Dalriada
Loarn mac Eirc
Loarn mac Eirc was a legendary king of Dál Riata who may have lived in the 5th century.The Duan Albanach and the Senchus Fer n-Alban and other genealogies name Loarn's father as Erc son of Eochaid Muinremuir...
. This was risky business under the rules of succession of the Gael, but he thereby secured his rear and, taking advantage of the renewal of Viking attacks on England, marched south to fight the English. He defeated the Angles at Carham
Battle of Carham
The Battle of Carham was a battle between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Northumbrians at Carham on Tweed in 1018 or possibly 1016. It is also sometimes known as the Battle of Coldstream, from the town of Coldstream...
in 1018 and installed his grandson, Duncan, son of the Abbot of Dunkeld and his choice as Tanist, in Carlisle as King of Cumbria that same year.
Bernicia
The first reliable report of Máel Coluim's reign is of an invasion of BerniciaBernicia
Bernicia was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England....
in 1006, perhaps the customary crech ríg (literally royal prey, a raid by a new king made to demonstrate prowess in war), which involved a siege
Siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
of Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
. This appears to have resulted in a heavy defeat by the Northumbrians, led by Uhtred of Bamburgh, later Earl of Bernicia, which is reported by the Annals of Ulster
Annals of Ulster
The Annals of Ulster are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years between AD 431 to AD 1540. The entries up to AD 1489 were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín, under his patron Cathal Óg Mac Maghnusa on the island of Belle Isle on Lough Erne in the...
.
A second war in Bernicia, probably in 1018, was more successful. The Battle of Carham
Battle of Carham
The Battle of Carham was a battle between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Northumbrians at Carham on Tweed in 1018 or possibly 1016. It is also sometimes known as the Battle of Coldstream, from the town of Coldstream...
, by the River Tweed
River Tweed
The River Tweed, or Tweed Water, is long and flows primarily through the Borders region of Great Britain. It rises on Tweedsmuir at Tweed's Well near where the Clyde, draining northwest, and the Annan draining south also rise. "Annan, Tweed and Clyde rise oot the ae hillside" as the Border saying...
, was a victory for the Scots led by Máel Coluim and the men of Strathclyde led by their king, Owen the Bald. By this time Earl Uchtred may have been dead, and Eiríkr Hákonarson
Eiríkr Hákonarson
Eiríkr Hákonarson or Eric of Norway or Eric of Hlathir was earl of Lade, ruler of Norway and earl of Northumbria.-Background:...
was appointed Earl of Northumbria by his brother-in-law Cnut the Great, although his authority seems to have been limited to the south, the former kingdom of Deira, and he took no action against the Scots so far as is known. The work De obsessione Dunelmi
De obsessione Dunelmi
De obsessione Dunelmi , is a historical work written in the north of England during the Anglo-Norman period, almost certainly at Durham, and probably in either the late 11th- or early 12th-century.-Provenance:...
(The siege of Durham, associated with Symeon of Durham
Symeon of Durham
Symeon of Durham was an English chronicler and a monk of Durham Priory. When William of Saint-Calais returned from his Norman exile in 1091, Symeon was probably in his company...
) claims that Uchtred's brother Eadwulf Cudel surrendered Lothian
Lothian
Lothian forms a traditional region of Scotland, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills....
to Máel Coluim, presumably in the aftermath of the defeat at Carham. This is likely to have been the lands between Dunbar
Dunbar
Dunbar is a town in East Lothian on the southeast coast of Scotland, approximately 28 miles east of Edinburgh and 28 miles from the English Border at Berwick-upon-Tweed....
and the Tweed as other parts of Lothian had been under Scots control before this time. It has been suggested that Cnut received tribute from the Scots for Lothian, but as he had likely received none from the Bernician Earls this is not very probable.
Cnut
Cnut, reports the Anglo-Saxon ChronicleAnglo-Saxon Chronicle
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals in Old English chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the Chronicle was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alfred the Great...
, led an army into Scotland on his return from pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. The Chronicle dates this to 1031, but there are reasons to suppose that it should be dated to 1027. Burgundian
Duchy of Burgundy
The Duchy of Burgundy , was heir to an ancient and prestigious reputation and a large division of the lands of the Second Kingdom of Burgundy and in its own right was one of the geographically larger ducal territories in the emergence of Early Modern Europe from Medieval Europe.Even in that...
chronicler Rodulfus Glaber
Rodulfus Glaber
Rodulfus Glaber was a monk and chronicler of the years around 1000 and is one of the chief sources for the history of France in that period.-Life:...
recounts the expedition soon afterwards, describing Máel Coluim as "powerful in resources and arms ... very Christian in faith and deed." Ralph claims that peace was made between Máel Coluim and Cnut through the intervention of Richard
Richard II, Duke of Normandy
Richard II , called the Good , was the eldest son and heir of Richard I the Fearless and Gunnora.-Biography:...
, Duke of Normandy
Duke of Normandy
The Duke of Normandy is the title of the reigning monarch of the British Crown Dependancies of the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey. The title traces its roots to the Duchy of Normandy . Whether the reigning sovereign is a male or female, they are always titled as the "Duke of...
, brother of Cnut's wife Emma
Emma of Normandy
Emma , was a daughter of Richard the Fearless, Duke of Normandy, by his second wife Gunnora. She was Queen consort of England twice, by successive marriages: first as second wife to Æthelred the Unready of England ; and then second wife to Cnut the Great of Denmark...
. Richard died in about 1027 and Rodulfus wrote close in time to the events.
It has been suggested that the root of the quarrel between Cnut and Máel Coluim lies in Cnut's pilgrimage to Rome, and the coronation of Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
Conrad II
Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor
Conrad II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1027 until his death.The son of a mid-level nobleman in Franconia, Count Henry of Speyer and Adelaide of Alsace, he inherited the titles of count of Speyer and of Worms as an infant when Henry died at age twenty...
, where Cnut and Rudolph III
Rudolph III of Burgundy
Rudolf III of Burgundy was the last King of an independent Burgundy. He was the son of Conrad, King of Burgundy, and Matilda of France...
, King of Burgundy
King of Burgundy
The following is a list of the Kings of the two Kingdoms of Burgundy, and a number of related political entities devolving from Carolingian machinations over family relations.- Kings of the Burgundians :...
had the place of honour. If Máel Coluim were present, and the repeated mentions of his piety in the annals make it quite possible that he made a pilgrimage to Rome, as did Mac Bethad mac Findláich ("Macbeth") in later times, then the coronation would have allowed Máel Coluim to publicly snub Cnut's claims to overlordship.
Cnut obtained rather less than previous English kings, a promise of peace and friendship rather than the promise of aid on land and sea that Edgar
Edgar of England
Edgar the Peaceful, or Edgar I , also called the Peaceable, was a king of England . Edgar was the younger son of Edmund I of England.-Accession:...
and others had obtained. The sources say that Máel Coluim was accompanied by one or two other kings, certainly Mac Bethad, and perhaps Echmarcach mac Ragnaill
Echmarcach mac Ragnaill
Echmarcach mac Ragnaill was the Gall-Gaidhel King of the Isles, Dublin , and much of Galloway. According to Seán Duffy he was either a grandson or great-grandson of Ivar of Waterford, but an alternative exists. Benjamin Hudson has contended Echmarcach was a grandson of Gofraid mac Arailt...
, King of Mann and the Isles, and of Galloway
Galloway
Galloway is an area in southwestern Scotland. It usually refers to the former counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire...
. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle remarks of the submission "but he [Máel Coluim] adhered to that for only a little while". Cnut was soon occupied in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
against Olaf Haraldsson and appears to have had no further involvement with Scotland.
Orkney and Moray
Olith a daughter of Máel Coluim, married Sigurd Hlodvisson, Earl of OrkneyEarl of Orkney
The Earl of Orkney was originally a Norse jarl ruling Orkney, Shetland and parts of Caithness and Sutherland. The Earls were periodically subject to the kings of Norway for the Northern Isles, and later also to the kings of Alba for those parts of their territory in mainland Scotland . The Earl's...
. Their son Thorfinn Sigurdsson was said to be five years old when Sigurd was killed on 23 April 1014 in the Battle of Clontarf
Battle of Clontarf
The Battle of Clontarf took place on 23 April 1014 between the forces of Brian Boru and the forces led by the King of Leinster, Máel Mórda mac Murchada: composed mainly of his own men, Viking mercenaries from Dublin and the Orkney Islands led by his cousin Sigtrygg, as well as the one rebellious...
. The Orkneyinga Saga
Orkneyinga saga
The Orkneyinga saga is a historical narrative of the history of the Orkney Islands, from their capture by the Norwegian king in the ninth century onwards until about 1200...
says that Thorfinn was raised at Máel Coluim's court and was given the Mormaerdom of Caithness
Mormaerdom of Caithness
The Mormaer of Caithness ruled a distinct mormaerdom in medieval Scotland in that it generally was held by a "foreign" prince, the Norse Earl of Orkney, the ruler of neighboring "Norwegian" province....
by his grandfather. Thorfinn, says the Heimskringla
Heimskringla
Heimskringla is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorri Sturluson ca. 1230...
, was the ally of the king of Scots, and counted on Máel Coluim's support to resist the "tyranny" of Norwegian King Olaf Haraldsson. The chronology of Thorfinn's life is problematic, and he may have had a share in the Earldom of Orkney while still a child, if he was indeed only five in 1014. Whatever the exact chronology, before Máel Coluim's death a client of the king of Scots was in control of Caithness and Orkney, although, as with all such relationships, it is unlikely to have lasted beyond his death.
If Máel Coluim exercised control over Moray, which is far from being generally accepted, then the annals record a number of events pointing to a struggle for power in the north. In 1020, Mac Bethad's father Findláech mac Ruaidrí was killed by the sons of his brother Máel Brigte. It seems that Máel Coluim mac Máil Brigti took control of Moray, for his death is reported in 1029.
Despite the accounts of the Irish annals, English and Scandinavian writers appear to see Mac Bethad as the rightful king of Moray: this is clear from their descriptions of the meeting with Cnut in 1027, before the death of Máel Coluim mac Máil Brigti. Máel Coluim was followed as king or mormaer by his brother Gille Coemgáin
Gille Coemgáin of Moray
Gilla Coemgáin was the King or Mormaer of Moray, a semi-autonomous kingdom centred around Inverness that stretched across the north of Scotland. Unlike his two predecessors, he is not called King of Scotland in his death notice, but merely Mormaer...
, husband of Gruoch, a granddaughter of King Cináed III. It has been supposed that Mac Bethad was responsible for the killing of Gille Coemgáin in 1032, but if Mac Bethad had a cause for feud in the killing of his father in 1020, Máel Coluim too had reason to see Gille Coemgáin dead. Not only had Gille Coemgáin's ancestors killed many of Máel Coluim's kin, but Gille Coemgáin and his son Lulach might be rivals for the throne. Máel Coluim had no living sons, and the threat to his plans for the succession was obvious. As a result, the following year Gruoch's brother or nephew, who might have eventually become king, was killed by Máel Coluim.
Strathclyde and the succession
It has traditionally been supposed that King Eógan the Bald of Strathclyde died at the Battle of Carham and that the kingdom passed into the hands of the Scots afterwards. This rests on some very weak evidence. It is far from certain that Eógan died at Carham, and it is reasonably certain that there were kings of Strathclyde as late as the 1054, when Edward the ConfessorEdward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
sent Earl Siward to install "Máel Coluim son of the king of the Cumbrians". The confusion is old, probably inspired by William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. C. Warren Hollister so ranks him among the most talented generation of writers of history since Bede, "a gifted historical scholar and an omnivorous reader, impressively well versed in the literature of classical,...
and embellished by John of Fordun, but there is no firm evidence that the kingdom of Strathclyde was a part of the kingdom of the Scots, rather than a loosely subjected kingdom, before the time of Máel Coluim II of Scotland's great-grandson Máel Coluim mac Donnchada.
By the 1030s Máel Coluim's sons, if he had any, were dead. The only evidence that he did have a son or sons is in Rodulfus Glaber's chronicle where Cnut is said to have stood as godfather to a son of Máel Coluim. His grandson Thorfinn would have been unlikely to accepted as king by the Scots, and he chose the sons of his other daughter, Bethóc
Bethóc
Bethóc ingen Maíl Coluim meic Cináeda was the eldest daughter of King Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots, who had no known sons.The strongest hereditary claim of succession to the Scottish throne therefore passed through Bethóc. Princess Bethóc married Crínán, Abbot of Dunkeld. The first son of...
, who was married to Crínán
Crínán of Dunkeld
Crínán of Dunkeld was the lay abbot of the diocese of Dunkeld, and perhaps the Mormaer of Atholl. Crínán was progenitor of the House of Dunkeld, the dynasty which would rule Scotland until the later 13th century....
, lay abbot
Lay abbot
Lay abbot is a name used to designate a layman on whom a king or someone in authority bestowed an abbey as a reward for services rendered; he had charge of the estate belonging to it, and was entitled to part of the income.This custom existed principally in the Frankish Empire from the eighth...
of Dunkeld
Dunkeld
Dunkeld is a small town in Strathtay, Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It is about 15 miles north of Perth on the eastern side of the A9 road into the Scottish Highlands and on the opposite side of the Tay from the Victorian village of Birnam. Dunkeld and Birnam share a railway station, on the...
, and perhaps Mormaer of Atholl. It may be no more than coincidence, but in 1027 the Irish annals had reported the burning of Dunkeld, although no mention is made of the circumstances. Máel Coluim's chosen heir, and the first tánaise ríg certainly known in Scotland, was Donnchad mac Crínáin ("Duncan I").
It is possible that a third daughter of Máel Coluim married Findláech mac Ruaidrí and that Mac Bethad was thus his grandson, but this rests on relatively weak evidence.
Death and posterity
Máel Coluim died in 1034, Marianus ScotusMarianus Scotus
Marianus Scotus , was an Irish monk and chronicler , was an Irishman by birth, and called Máel Brigte, or Devotee of St...
giving the date as 25 November 1034. The king lists say that he died at Glamis
Glamis
Glamis is a small village in Angus, Scotland, located four miles south of Kirriemuir and five miles southwest of Forfar. It is the location of Glamis Castle, the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.-History:...
, variously describing him as a "most glorious" or "most victorious" king. The Annals of Tigernach report that "Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, king of Scotland, the honour of all the west of Europe, died." The Prophecy of Berchán, perhaps the inspiration for John of Fordun and Andrew of Wyntoun
Andrew of Wyntoun
Andrew Wyntoun, known as Andrew of Wyntoun was a Scottish poet, a canon and prior of Loch Leven on St Serf's Inch and later, a canon of St...
's accounts where Máel Coluim is killed fighting bandits, says that he died by violence, fighting "the parricides", suggested to be the sons of Máel Brigte of Moray.
Perhaps the most notable feature of Máel Coluim's death is the account of Marianus, matched by the silence of the Irish annals, which tells us that Donnchad I became king and ruled for five years and nine months. Given that his death in 1040 is described as being "at an immature age" in the Annals of Tigernach, he must have been a young man in 1034. The absence of any opposition suggests that Máel Coluim had dealt thoroughly with any likely opposition in his own lifetime.
Tradition, dating from Fordun's time if not earlier, knew the Pictish stone now called "Glamis 2" as "King Malcolm's grave stone". The stone is a Class II stone, apparently formed by re-using a Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
standing stone. Its dating is uncertain, with dates from the 8th century onwards having been proposed. While an earlier date is favoured, an association with accounts of Máel Coluim's has been proposed on the basis of the iconography of the carvings.
On the question of Máel Coluim's putative pilgrimage, pilgrimages to Rome, or other long-distance journeys, were far from unusual. Thorfinn Sigurdsson, Cnut and Mac Bethad have already been mentioned. Rognvald Kali Kolsson is known to have gone crusading in the Mediterranean in the 12th century. Nearer in time, Dyfnwal of Strathclyde died on pilgrimage to Rome in 975 as did Máel Ruanaid uá Máele Doraid, King of the Cenél Conaill
Cenél Conaill
The Cenél Conaill is the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Conall Gulban, son of Niall Noígiallach defined by oral and recorded history. They were also known in Scotland as the Kindred of Saint Columba....
, in 1025.
Not a great deal is known of Máel Coluim's activities beyond the wars and killings. The Book of Deer
Book of Deer
The Book of Deer is a 10th-century Latin Gospel Book from Old Deer, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, with early 12th-century additions in Latin, Old Irish and Scottish Gaelic. It is most famous for containing the earliest surviving Gaelic literature from Scotland...
records that Máel Coluim "gave a king's dues in Biffie and in Pett Meic-Gobraig, and two davochs" to the monastery of Old Deer
Old Deer
Old Deer a parish and village in the district of Buchan, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The population as of 1901 was 4,313. The village lies on the Deer or South Ugie Water, 10.1 miles west of Peterhead, and two miles from Mintlaw station on the Great North of Scotland Railway Company's branch line...
. He was also probably not the founder of the Bishopric of Mortlach-Aberdeen. John of Fordun has a peculiar tale to tell, related to the supposed "Laws of Malcolm MacKenneth", saying that Máel Coluim gave away all of Scotland, except for the Moot Hill at Scone, which is unlikely to have any basis in fact.
External links
- CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts at University College Cork includes the Annals of Ulster, Tigernach, the Four Masters and Innisfallen, the Chronicon Scotorum, the Lebor Bretnach (which includes the Duan Albanach), Genealogies, and various Saints' Lives. Most are translated into English, or translations are in progress.
- Heimskringla at World Wide School
- http://www.northvegr.org/misc%20primary%20sources/icelandic%20sagas%20vol%203/titles.html at Northvegr
- Anglo-Saxon Chronicle an XML edition by Tony Jebson (translation at OMACL)