Eochaid, son of Rhun

Eochaid ab Rhun (fl. 853-889) was a ninth century King of Strathclyde, who may have also been King of the Picts. He was a son of Rhun ab Arthgal, King of Strathclyde, and descended from a long line of British kings. Eochaid's mother is recorded to have been a daughter of Cináed mac Ailpín, King of the Picts. This maternal descent from the royal Alpínid dynasty may well account for the record of Eochaid reigning over the Pictish realm after the death of Cináed's son, Áed, in 878. According to various sources, Áed was slain by Giric, whose ancestry is uncertain and who then proceeded to usurp the Alban throne. Eochaid was posthumously given the epithet "In Tuilti" by the Prophecy of Saint Berchán.

Heir to the Brythonic kingdom of Strathclyde and a claimant to the Gaelic throne of the Picts, Eochaid was of mixed blood. The latter kindred is highlighted, and women are italicised.

Map of northern Britain, locations relating to the life and times of Eochaid.

Eochaid was a son of Rhun ab Arthgal, King of Strathclyde. Rhun's patrilineal ancestry is evidenced by a pedigree preserved within a collection of tenth century Welsh genealogical material known as the Harleian genealogies. According to this source, he was descended from a long line of kings of Al Clud. The ninth to twelfth century Chronicle of the Kings of Alba evinces that Rhun was married to a daughter of Cináed mac Ailpín, King of the Picts, and states that a product of the union was Eochaid himself. Eochaid's maternal ancestry may be exemplified in the name he bore. There is no known British form of the Gaelic . In theory, a Pictish form of the name would be or .

Photograph of the fortress of Al Clud occupied Al Clud ("the rock of the Clyde"). The mediaeval citadel that sat atop this geological formation formed the capital of the Kingdom of Al Clud until the late ninth century.

In 870, during the reign of Rhun's father, Arthgal ap Dyfnwal, King of Al Clud, the fortress of Al Clud was captured and destroyed by the insular Scandinavian kings Amlaíb and Ímar. In the following year, Amlaíb and Ímar returned to Ireland with a fleet of two hundred ships, and a mass of captives identified as English, British, and Pictish. Arthgal died in 872. The Annals of Ulster and Chronicon Scotorum reveal that he was slain at the behest of Rhun's brother-in-law, Custantín mac Cináeda, King of the Picts. The circumstances surrounding Arthgal's assassination are unknown, and Rhun's reign probably commenced not long after his death.

An eighteenth century engraving of the southern bank of the River Clyde at Govan. The scene shows a now-nonexistent artificial hill that could have been the royal assembly site of the Kingdom of Strathclyde following the fall of Al Clud.

Prior to its fall, the fortress of Al Clud served as the capital of Arthgal's Kingdom of Al Clud, and afterwards the capital appears to have relocated up the River Clyde to the vicinity of Govan and Partick. The relocation is partly exemplified by a shift in royal terminology. Until the fall of Al Clud, for example, the rulers of the realm were styled after the fortress; whereas following the loss of the site, the Kingdom of Al Clud came to be known as the Kingdom of Strathclyde in consequence to its reorientation towards Ystrad Clud (Strathclyde), the valley of the River Clyde. Either Arthgal or Rhun could have been the first monarch to rule the reconstructed realm of Strathclyde.

It is uncertain when Rhun's reign and life ended. One possibility is that Rhun died in 876 when Custantín seems to have been slain by Vikings. Custantín's death is dated to 876 by the Annals of Ulster. The Chronicle of the Kings of Alba appears to locate his fall in Atholl, whilst several king-lists locate his demise to a place variously called , an otherwise uncertain location that might refer to Inverdovat in Fife.

Sources of the royal succession The title of Áed mac Cináeda as it appears on folio 26r of Oxford Bodleian Library Rawlinson B 489 (the Annals of Ulster). As far as the Irish annals are concerned, Áed was the last King of the Picts. Nevertheless, other sources report that Áed was succeeded by Eochaid and Giric.

It is uncertain who assumed the kingship of Strathclyde after Rhun. If Rhun and Custantín both died in 876, Eochaid could well have succeeded his father. Certainly, Custantín's brother, Áed mac Cináeda, succeeded as King of the Picts and ruled as such upon his death two years later. Whilst the Annals of Ulster reports that Áed was killed by his own companions, several mediaeval king-lists state that he was slain by a certain Giric. Quite who reigned as king after Áed is uncertain, although there are several plausible possibilities.

Barochan Cross, a stone high cross, dating between the eighth and tenth century. This British monument is an example of the so-called 'Govan School' of sculpture.

According to the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba, Eochaid succeeded Áed and held the kingship for eleven years. The chronicle adds that it was further said that Giric also reigned during this period because he was Eochaid's ("foster father", "guardian") "governor", or "king-maker"). A solar eclipse is also noted during their reigns—an event dated to the feast of St Ciricius — and the two are stated to have been ejected from the kingdom. As for the eclipse, the chronicle appears to place it in the context of the final year of Eochaid's kingship. Nevertheless, it is clear that the eclipse is identical to that which took place on 16 June 885, as 16 June is certainly the feast day of at least one saint named Ciricius. Since the dates given by the chronicle and the Annals of Ulster show that there was an eleven-year gap between the previous reign and the next, it is evident that the eclipse indeed occurred in the midst of Eochaid's reign. The chronicle's inconsistency in regard to the eclipse may owe itself to an attempt to increase the dramatic effect of the regime change by associating a remarkable astronomical event with Eochaid's expulsion.

Other than the chronicle, the only source to associate both Eochaid and Giric as kings is the twelfth century The Prophecy of Berchán. According to the latter, Eochaid ruled as king for thirteen years until he was expelled and succeeded by Giric (described as "the son of fortune"). The discrepancies between the two sources may partly stem from an ethnic bias. Certainly, The Prophecy of Berchán is critical of Eochaid's British heritage whilst Giric is celebrated as a Scot.

Relationship with Giric The name of Giric as it appears on folio 30v of Lat. 4126: "Grig filius Dunegal.

Giric's familial origins are uncertain. According to several versions of the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba his father's name was , whereas certain versions of the Verse Chronicle equate his father's name to . Although it is possible that Giric's association with kingship stems from an ancestral claim, the evidence for this is uncertain. Giric need not have possessed any claim of his own, and could have merely played the role of kingmaker, by orchestrating the removal of Áed, and installing Eochaid in his place.

Photograph of a mounted warrior, the most prominent figure displayed upon the Govan sarcophagus. This monument is perhaps the finest example of the "Govan School" of sculpture. The sarcophagus could be that of Custantín mac Cináeda, the Pictish king who orchestrated the death of Eochaid's paternal grandfather.

Nevertheless, there is also reason to suspect that Giric's patronym, "son of Dúngal", may actually refer to an early form of the Welsh rather than the Gaelic . If correct, Giric's patronym could be evidence that his father was Dyfnwal ap Rhydderch, King of Al Clud and that Giric was a brother of Arthgal. Such a relationship could indicate that Giric's apparent killing of Áed was undertaken in the context of avenging Arthgal's demise at Custantín's behest. If Giric and Eochaid were indeed both descendants of Dyfnwal, Eochaid could well have ruled as king under the tutelage of Giric, his granduncle.

Giric's patronym may instead identify him as a son of Domnall mac Ailpín. If such a parentage is correct, it would certainly mean that Giric possessed a strong claim to the Pictish throne. The fact that Áed seems to have succeeded Custantín could indicate that Giric had been denied the kingship. Such a possibility could account for Giric's apparent killing of Áed. It could also reveal that Giric received or was reliant upon significant assistance from Eochaid — in this case his maternal kinsman — which would in turn account for the evidence that Giric and Eochaid shared the Pictish kingship in some manner.

It is conceivable that Eochaid ruled over both the Strathclyde Britons and Picts. If so, he could have initiated his royal career as King of Strathclyde before succeeding as King of the Picts. In fact, the evidence of shared kingship may merely mean that Eochaid ruled the British kingdom whilst Giric ruled the Pictish realm. As such, it is possible that Giric was successful in imposing some form of authority over the Kingdom of Strathclyde during Eochaid's floruit. If correct, the price for Eochaid's assistance may have been the preservation of the British realm from other descendants of Cináed. The fact that Eochaid's grandfather died in 872 could indicate that, if his father died soon after, Eochaid may have succeeded to the kingship of Strathclyde as a youth.

The remarkable uncertainty surrounding the Pictish kingship during this period means that it is also possible that Eochaid and Giric were rivals rather than allies. An adversarial relationship between the two may well be evidenced by The Prophecy of Berchán which gives a negative account of the Britons during Giric's tenure.

Expansion of the British realm

Transformation of the Pictish realm The title of Domnall mac Custantín, the first recorded King of Alba, as it appears on folio 27v of Oxford Bodleian Library Rawlinson B 489.

As for the Scottish kingdom, the succeeding king is identified as Domnall mac Custantín by the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba. Domnall's kingship is corroborated by the Annals of Ulster and Chronicon Scotorum which report his death in 900. The fact the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba accords Domnall an eleven-year reign places the inception of his rule in 889 and therefore corroborates the eleven-year reign accorded to Eochaid. Prior to about this period, the Gaelic stood for "Britain". In fact, the shifting terminology employed by various English, Irish, and Scottish sources may be evidence that the Pictish realm underwent a radical transformation during this period in history.

An excerpt from folio 124r of British Library Cotton Tiberius B I (the "C" version of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle): "". The excerpt refers to eighth century Picts of the Kingdom of the Picts.

For example, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle identifies the Irish as up until the 890s. By the 920s, this term came to be accorded to the people formerly regarded as Pictish (and last recorded as such in the 870s). As for the Irish annals—specifically the hypothesised Chronicle of Ireland—the terms and ("king of the Picts") are last accorded to the Picts and their kings in the 870s. In fact, the last Pictish king to be styled thus was Domnall's uncle, Áed. By the 900s, the terms ("men of Alba") and ("king of Alba") are utilised for these people. The Chronicle of the Kings of Alba last utilises the term in the midst of Domnall's reign. Thereafter, the realm is called .

An excerpt from folio 141r of British Library Cotton Tiberius B I: "". The excerpt refers to tenth-century Scottish people of the Kingdom of Alba.

There is reason to suspect that the political and dynastic upheaval endured by the Pictish realm in the last quarter of the ninth century was the catalyst for a radically new political order based upon the reestablishment of the Alpínids in the kingship. Alternately, the transformation could have taken place specifically during the floruit of Giric and Eochaid. For instance, it is conceivable that Giric gained the throne by seizing upon the upheaval caused by the incessant Viking depredations that assailed Pictavia. At an earlier date, the Gaelic realm of Dál Riata appears to have crumbled under such pressures, and it is possible that Giric drew military power from this broken polity to forcefully seize the Pictish throne. In any case, the accommodation of significant Gaelic aristocratic power in the wavering Pictish realm could account for the eventual transformation of Pictavia into Alba.

The name of Eochaid's maternal aunt, Máel Muire ingen Cináeda, as it appears on folio 28v of Oxford Bodleian Library Rawlinson B 489.

The temporary exclusion of the Alpínids from the Pictish throne could well have meant that they endured exile in Ireland. Certainly, Domnall's paternal aunt, Máel Muire ingen Cináeda, possessed significant Irish connections as the wife of two successive kings of Tara—Áed Findliath and Flann Sinna mac Maíl Shechnaill —and the mother of another—Niall Glúndub mac Áeda. If Domnall and his succeeding first cousin, Custantín mac Áeda, indeed spent their youth in Ireland prior to assuming the kingship of Alba, their Gaelic upbringing could well have ensured the continuation of Pictavia's Gaelicisation.

Map od the kingdoms of Alba and Strathclyde, and the Scandinavian and Northumbrian territories in about 900.

Furthermore, if the Pictish transformation indeed stems from the floruit of Giric and Eochaid, the new terminology could indicate that the Kingdom of Alba was envisioned to include Pictish, Gaelic, British, and English inhabitants. Several king-lists allege that Giric subjugated Ireland and England during his reign, an outlandish claim that could instead evince a multi-ethnic northern alliance under his authority. As such, there is reason to suspect that — a term previously used for Britain — may have been meant to encapsulate a new political construction, a polity of "North Britain". Alternately, another possibility is that the recorded shift in terminology — from and to and — may merely be a translational shift from Latin to Gaelic. |group=note

Legacy Photograph of the site of the mediaeval fortress of Dundurn, said to be the site of Giric's last stand. One possibility is that Eochaid perished with Giric here.

Although the apparent reigns of Eochaid and Giric are obscure and uncertain, Giric eventually came to remembered as a legendary figure, credited as the liberator of the Gaelic Church from the Picts, and the architect of military conquests of Ireland and England. Eochaid, on the other hand, is only attested by the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba and The Prophecy of Berchán. Unlike Giric, later mediaeval king-lists and chronicles fail to include Eochaid within their accounts of Scottish history. In fact, Eochaid, and the later Alpínid Amlaíb mac Illuilb, King of Alba, are the only Scottish kings not noted by the king-lists. The window within which Eochaid and Giric appear to have reigned marks the only point between the careers of Cináed and Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Alba that a patrilineal Alpínid is not known to have ruled the Pictish/Alban realm.

Eochaid is unattested after his apparent expulsion in 889, and the date of his death is unrecorded and unknown. According to various king-lists, Giric was slain at Dundurn. Evidence of extensive burning at the site may relate to this event, and may mark the end of the fort's use. If the accounts of Giric's downfall are to be believed, and if both he and Eochaid were allied together at the time, it is conceivable that both Eochaid and Giric fell together. Alternately, Giric's killing could have contributed to Eochaid's ejection from the kingship. Although it is unknown who was responsible for Giric's reported demise, one candidate is the succeeding Domnall. Alternately, Domnall's path to throne could have been paved by magnates who afterwards sent for him.

The title of Dyfnwal, King of Strathclyde, a possible descendant of Eochaid, as it appears on folio 29r of Paris Bibliothèque Nationale Latin 4126: "".

Certainly, nothing is recorded concerning the kingship of Strathclyde until the turn of the tenth century, when the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba notes the passing of a certain Dyfnwal, King of Strathclyde. Dyfnwal's parentage is uncertain. On one hand, he could have been another son of Rhun. On the other hand, he could have been descended from Eochaid: either as a son or grandson. Alternately, Dyfnwal could have represented a more distant branch of the same dynasty. Eochaid may have also had a daughter, Lann, the wife of Niall Glúndub attested by the Great Book of Lecan version of the twelfth century Banshenchas. As such, if the Banshenchas is to be believed, a maternal grandson of Eochaid was Lann's son, Muirchertach mac Néill.

Ancestry