Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1167 Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair consolidated a precarious high-kingship through military campaigning, hostage-taking, assemblies and church patronage. Leading a broad coalition into Tír Eoghain, he secured submissions, divided authority among northern rivals and demonstrated coordination by land and sea. At Athboy and Tailtiu, he projected island-wide rule, promoted peace, protected churches and regulated political obligations. Ireland’s pastoral economy, port towns and ecclesiastical centres underpinned these networks. Diarmait Mac Murchada returned to Leinster with a small overseas force, regained territory, then submitted to Ruaidrí while retaining future foreign support. Deaths, violence and church building revealed continuing instability beneath Ruaidrí’s temporary ascendancy.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1166, Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn’s breach of a guaranteed settlement in Ulaid, including the blinding of King Eochaid, destroyed his authority. Abandoned by allies, he was defeated and killed. Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair of Connacht exploited the collapse, securing submissions, hostages and tribute from Dublin and regional rulers, while distributing wealth and arbitrating disputes. Diarmait Mac Murchada, deprived of Mac Lochlainn’s support and opposed within Leinster, was expelled after coalition campaigns destroyed his Ferns residence. He sought Henry II’s permission to recruit overseas, creating conditions for later Anglo-Norman intervention. Fires, church affairs, rural burdens, towns and royal patronage also marked 1166.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
During 1163, Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn’s high-kingship remained influential but dependent on negotiation, payments and local compliance. Meath’s rulers were reshaped through deposition and gold payment, while his son Niall’s coercive progress ended with his capture in Uí Maine after offences against communities and churches. Assassinations, deaths and cattle-raiding reflected continuing regional rivalries. Ecclesiastical leaders died, yet monastic institutions retained traditional offices alongside diocesan reform. Glendalough suffered a destructive fire, whereas Derry’s Columban community built a huge lime-kiln, signalling organised construction. Learning, agriculture, cattle wealth and Irish Sea trade underpinned society, revealing a politically fragmented but connected Ireland at this time.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1162 Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn’s loose high-kingship united northern, Meath and Connacht forces, yet failed to compel Dublin’s surrender; after plundering Fine Gall, he accepted 120 ounces of gold. Tribute arrangements in Meath and exemptions from coigny showed the political and local economic importance of land and provisioning. At Clane, Gelasius of Armagh led a synod reinforcing clerical discipline, Armagh’s educational primacy and church reform. Laurence O’Toole became archbishop of Dublin, while Derry’s sacred precinct was reorganised. Deaths, fires, relic enshrinement and raids exposed cultural vulnerability. Continuing regional warfare and dynastic rivalry undermined Mac Lochlainn’s seemingly dominant authority across Ireland.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1161 Ireland comprised competing provincial kingdoms, lordships, churches and towns rather than a unified state. Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn, dominant northern ruler, and Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair of Connacht negotiated authority through campaigns, hostages and assemblies, dividing influence while preserving Mac Lochlainn’s senior kingship. Meath remained contested, with local dynastic violence continuing despite high-level settlements. Church reform and power were marked by bishops’ deaths, Dublin Archbishop Gregory’s death, Columban privileges secured by Flaithbertach Ua Brolcháin, and written guarantees for Ardbraccan. Rural communities supplied armies and suffered plunder; cattle and silver underpinned wealth. Towns, learning and poetry shaped wider Irish cultural life.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1154, Toirdelbach Ua Conchobair of Connacht and Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn of Cenél nÉogain contested Ireland’s high-kingship through fleets, raids, alliances and submissions. Connacht ships attacked Tír Chonaill and Inishowen, fighting an Irish Sea force in a costly, probably Connacht-favoured naval battle. Mac Lochlainn retaliated in Connacht, reshaped power in Bréifne, and gained Dublin’s allegiance. Dynastic killings, expulsions, raids and Munster instability exposed wider political fragmentation. Crop destruction, cattle losses and burned churches harmed communities. Ecclesiastical reform continued, alongside monastic expansion and lively urban trade and learning. Neither king prevailed; indigenous rivalries, not English intervention, defined the year within Ireland.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1150 Ireland remained divided among competing provincial and lesser kings, with Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn strengthening his high-kingship through hostages, alliances and the partition of Mide. Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair retained Connacht, while Tairdelbach Ua Briain raided Mide, gained Dublin’s submission and campaigned in Leinster. Warfare, cattle raiding, killings and dynastic punishments accompanied short-lived negotiated peace. Clergy at Armagh and Derry legitimised rulers, mediated settlements and collected substantial livestock tribute. Church reform advanced alongside older monastic networks; Bishop Muiredach Ua Dubthaig died. Fires damaged religious settlements. Cattle, horses and urban trade underpinned power, exposing warfare’s burden on ordinary households throughout Ireland.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1149, competing Irish rulers pursued authority through raids, alliances, hostages and ceremonial submission. Toirdelbach Ua Conchobair maintained Connacht, while Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn expanded northern influence, receiving hostages from Tigernán Ua Ruairc, Diarmait Mac Murchada and Ulaid leaders, and mediating at Dublin. Warfare devastated Ulaid, Brega and ecclesiastical settlements, bringing cattle, captives and damage to churches. Munster forces under Toirdelbach Ua Briain raided Connacht and destroyed Dún Gaillimhe. Fires affected Clonmacnoise, Derry and Inis Mic Dairen; churchmen also died. Annals reveal pastoral wealth, displacement and the vulnerability of communities sustaining contested kingship. No ruler commanded uncontested authority across the island.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1148, Irish politics combined rivalry, raiding and shifting alliances with major ecclesiastical reform. Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair, king of Ireland with opposition, campaigned in Mide, while Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn intervened in Ulaid, where changing rulers, hostages and a relic-sanctioned peace reflected unstable power. Tigernán Ua Ruairc survived an assassination attempt, and Dublin’s Hiberno-Norse king Óttar was killed. At Inispatrick, Malachy Ua Morgair gathered bishops and clergy, advancing diocesan reform and plans for papal pallia. He consecrated Cnoc na Seangan, while Baltinglass Abbey was founded. Malachy died at Clairvaux, but his reforms helped shape the 1152 settlement at Kells-Mellifont in Ireland.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1146, Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair’s contested high-kingship faced warfare across Ireland. After raiding Tethba, his returning army suffered losses when Athlone’s wicker bridge collapsed during an attack, though he retained captured cattle. Connacht defeated a coalition, while Tigernán Ua Ruairc burned Ua Conchobair vessels and Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair campaigned actively. In Brega, Dublin leader Ragnall mac Torcaill was killed, followed by the killing of Cellach Ua Cellaig with Dublin support. Rulers also died in Osraige. Churchman Cormac Ua Cathasaig died amid ecclesiastical reform. Raiding, captives and damaged infrastructure exposed rural communities’ insecurity; a reported December storm remains uncertain in sources.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1141, Ireland remained a polity where Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair exercised contested high-kingship through raids, fortifications, hostages and submissions. His campaign in the midlands coincided with dynastic killings in Meath and lordships. Leinster’s Diarmait Mac Murchada ordered, or authorised, a purge that killed or blinded leading nobles, securing power but weakening provincial cohesion; he was defeated while raiding Laois. Conchobar Ua Briain gained Dublin, then his forces raided Connacht and destroyed Dún Gaillimhe. Church communities suffered and received protection, while monastic penance and burial bound elites to religious institutions. Cattle-raiding, provisioning, Dublin trade and rivalries underpinned an unstable political order.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1139, Ireland remained politically fragmented, with Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair’s high-kingship dependent on force, alliances and hostages. He demonstrated authority by diverting the River Suck through marshes, strengthening Connacht’s eastern frontier, and by blinding a rival. Across Ireland, dynastic feuds brought killings, church burnings, plundering and violated sanctuary, while Munster’s Uí Briain exploited Cormac Mac Carthaig’s recent death. Church leaders negotiated peace between Munster and Leinster, and Malachy began his journey towards Rome, linking reformers with continental Christianity. Dublin’s religious life developed, poets and clerics died, and ordinary people directly bore warfare, tribute and labour demands during the troubled year.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1136 Ireland remained divided among kings, church jurisdictions and raiding forces. Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair, pre-eminent king of Connacht, faced dynastic threats, imprisoning Ruaidrí despite clerical guarantees, while another son, Áed, was blinded and a rival claimant killed. In the north, Conchobar Ua Lochlainn’s murder enabled Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn’s accession. Conflict devastated Mide and Bréifne, where cattle raids and attacks included Clonard’s plundering. Leinster, Dublin and Munster saw disputed campaigns. Malachy of Armagh advanced church reform and relinquished office amid succession. Clerics, monasteries and men remained vulnerable yet influential. Annals reveal power founded on kinship, livestock, violence, authority and memory.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1128 Ireland was marked by warfare, shifting alliances and ecclesiastical intervention. Toirdelbach Ua Conchobair raided Leinster, Wexford and Dublin, reaffirming Connacht’s reach after resistance to his rule. Tigernán Ua Ruairc suffered defeats amid northern and midland conflicts, while attacks on Cellach of Armagh’s entourage brought moral condemnation. Conchobar Mac Lochlainn expanded power through hostages and victories but was censured for burning Trim’s churches. Local rulers also faced violent succession struggles. Cellach negotiated a temporary Connacht–Munster peace, demonstrating Armagh’s diplomatic influence. Church offices remained politically contested, while ports, cattle wealth, monasteries and the Cross of Cong reflected Ireland’s connected culture.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1127, Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair, king of Connacht, invaded Munster by land and sea, plundered Cork, displaced Cormac Mac Carthaig and partitioned the province. Cormac’s restoration from Lismore, backed by Ua Briain allies, quickly overturned this settlement, while hostage threats and naval conflict exposed its brutality. Tairdelbach’s son was expelled from Dublin and Leinster, and disputes in Kildare and Ulaid demonstrated persistent regional autonomy. Churchmen mediated politics, religious centres remained influential, and sacred objects expressed power. Warfare burdened ordinary communities, despite continuing trade, scholarship and artistic patronage, confirming limits to Tairdelbach’s high-kingship across Ireland during the unstable and contested year.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1126, Toirdelbach Ua Conchobair exploited the death of Leinster’s king to secure hostages, obtain Dublin’s submission and install his young son Conchobar as ruler of Dublin and, according to some annals, Leinster. From a long encampment in Ormond, he campaigned against Desmond, Osraige and other regions, taking cattle, captives and tribute. Raiding and counter-raiding also affected Connacht, Tír Conaill and the north-east, revealing unstable alliances and local conflict. Cellach of Armagh sought to restrain warfare while advancing church reform and consecrating a stone church. Cork burned, learned clerics died, and Toirdelbach’s extensive but coercive ascendancy remained fragile throughout Ireland.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1125 Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair, king of Connacht, extended his supremacy across central and southern Ireland through campaigns, tribute and political appointments. After southern revolts, warfare affected Limerick, Lismore and coastal Munster. He exacted compensation at Aghaboe, asserted influence over Leinster and Dublin, then invaded Meath after Murchad Ua Mael Sechlainn destroyed Shannon bridges. Tairdelbach expelled Murchad and partitioned Meath among dependent rivals, provoking immediate killings and continued instability. Fighting also affected Brega, Airgialla and Connacht. Meanwhile Armagh’s church received a new roof, prominent clerics died, and warfare burdened farming, trade and local communities. His authority remained powerful but insecure.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1118, Diarmait Ua Briain’s death intensified Munster’s succession crisis and enabled Toirdelbach Ua Conchobair of Connacht to reshape southern politics. After fighting near Glanmire, where Brian Ua Briain was killed, Toirdelbach allied with Tadc and Cormac Mac Carthaig. He allocated Desmond to Mac Carthaig and Thomond to Diarmait’s sons, securing obedience through hostages and weakening Uí Briain supremacy. He also attacked Kincora and extended influence over Dublin, Leinster and Osraige. Regional warfare continued elsewhere. Royal deaths, church affairs, learning and burdens of military hostings reflected a society unsettled by conflict. The unstable partition nevertheless established Munster’s enduring political division.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
Ireland in 1117 remained fragmented as Muirchertach Ua Briain’s illness and family rebellion weakened Munster, while Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair of Connacht expanded his influence. Connacht forces defeated Munstermen at Lettracha Odráin after destructive reciprocal raids, and Tairdelbach took hostages from Mide’s king. Leinster and Dublin lost their shared ruler, Diarmait son of Énna, while northern kindreds continued violent rivalries. Church life was marked by numerous clerical deaths, notably reformer Máel Muire Ua Dúnáin, and the killing of Kells’ coarb and community. Following the 1116 famine, warfare intensified hardship for communities, more clearly exposing shifting overlordship, ecclesiastical vulnerability and regional interdependence.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1115, severe frost and snow caused widespread hunger, livestock deaths and disruption across Ireland, particularly Leinster. Muirchertach Ua Briain recovered from illness, regained Munster after his brother Diarmait’s capture, and reasserted influence through campaigns in Brega and Dublin, where his son’s forces defeated Leinster leaders. Yet attacks on churches at Ardbraccan and Clonmacnoise exposed warfare’s damage to sacred centres. Tairdelbach Ua Conchobair raided Thomond, removed a Ua Briain claimant, survived internal opposition, deployed a Shannon fleet and allied with Mide. His gifts at Clonmacnoise combined piety and political display. Despite Muirchertach’s recovery, Connacht’s growing power signalled a shifting balance.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1112, rivalry between northern overking Domnall Ua Lochlainn and Munster’s Muirchertach Ua Briain shaped Irish politics. Domnall raided Fine Gall near Dublin, seizing cattle and captives, demonstrating northern power in a prosperous region. Armagh’s enclosure, church and neighbouring quarters burned on 23 March, amid implementation of diocesan reforms agreed at Ráith Bressail. Deaths included leading officers of Derry, Kildare and Clonfert, illustrating enduring ecclesiastical and dynastic institutions. Terryglass and Fore also suffered fires, while a local aristocrat was killed. Conversely, an abundant mast crop aided rural households and pig husbandry, underscoring countryside wealth vulnerable to warfare and disruption alike.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1107 Ireland remained divided between powerful regional kings, notably Muirchertach Ua Briain of Munster and Dublin and Domnall Ua Lochlainn in the north. Cellach of Armagh negotiated a year's truce between them, demonstrating growing clerical influence, although local feuds and killings continued across Ulster, the midlands and Munster. Muirchertach imprisoned and released his nephew in Dublin and plundered Mungret. Severe snow, rain, wind and lightning killed people and livestock, ruined crops, and damaged houses and woodland. Lightning burned Kincora and Cashel. Church appointments and reform advanced, while trading towns, scholarship and rural agriculture underpinned society throughout the island alike.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1102, Ireland experienced negotiated truces rather than unity, as Muirchertach Ua Briain and Domnall Ua Lochlainn balanced competing claims to national authority. Armagh held hostages securing their one-year agreement, although raids and killings continued across Ulster, Connacht, Bréifne and Meath. Muirchertach also confronted Magnus Barelegs’ fleet before forging a marriage alliance with Magnus’s son Sigurd, and linked his dynasty to Norman rebel Arnulf de Montgomery. Churches served as guarantors, learning centres and targets for attack. Rural communities bore warfare’s economic burden, while ports sustained Irish Sea trade. These fragile personal settlements reorganised conflict, preceding renewed campaigns thereafter in 1103.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1100 Ireland remained divided among local and provincial kings, as Muirchertach Ua Briain of Munster and Domnall Ua Lochlainn of Ailech contested supremacy. Muirchertach’s northern expedition to Eas Ruaidh failed, Leinster raided Airgialla, and Dublin’s fleet was destroyed in Inis Eógain. Domnall retaliated by ravaging Brega and Fine Gall and captured Donnchad Ua hEochada, king of Ulaid. Deaths of rulers and churchmen altered regional politics. Warfare burdened rural communities, while Dublin’s maritime economy remained important. Monasteries sustained learning, pilgrimage and mediation. Neither overking prevailed; their struggle intensified before Muirchertach’s major 1101 campaign, which devastated Ailech and displayed southern power.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1096 Ireland remained politically fragmented despite Muirchertach Ua Briain’s southern overlordship, as Domnall Ua Lochlainn challenged him and regional rulers fought, raided and died in feuds. Muirchertach rebuilt Kincora, restoring Ua Briain prestige after its 1088 destruction, while Irish Sea links were marked by death of his nephew on Man. Fear of a calendrical omen, intensified by recent mortality, prompted island-wide fasting, almsgiving and church grants. Lightning burned Limerick. Waterford’s Malchus was consecrated by Anselm of Canterbury, establishing an urban bishopric connected to ecclesiastical reform. The year combined dynastic consolidation, insecurity, clerical authority and growing international religious maritime ties.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1094 Muirchertach Ua Briain, king of Munster, recovered influence across Ireland amid rivalry with Domnall Ua Lochlainn. After campaigning involving Dublin, Meath, Leinster and northern forces, he expelled Gofraid Méránach, probably Godred Crovan, from Dublin, securing its maritime wealth. Domnall Ua Máel Sechlainn of Meath was killed and Muirchertach divided Meath between dependent rivals. His authority nevertheless met limits: Connacht’s Síl Muiredaig defeated Munster-backed forces at Fidnach, and one expedition failed to obtain hostages. Armagh’s abbot visited Munster successfully, while violence, severe weather and scarcity compounded disruption. Dublin’s trade and crafts endured. The year redistributed power without unifying Ireland.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1092, Ruaidrí na Saide Buide Ua Conchobair, overking of Connacht, was treacherously blinded by rivals, enabling Muirchertach Ua Briain of Munster to claim supremacy, take hostages and manipulate local contenders. Muirchertach also campaigned in Leinster, while his brother Diarmait was exiled to Ulaid. Regional instability included Énna of Uí Chennselaig’s killing and Éoganacht deaths. Armagh’s church and settlement burned, while a Munster fleet plundered Clonmacnoise. Dublin remained under Gofraid Méránach. Raids devastated Mag Aí’s cattle, and severe winter frost followed. Divergent annals nevertheless portray authority as dependent on alliances, violence, hostages, wealth and unreliable regional obedience throughout medieval Ireland.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
1091 Ireland remained divided among provincial dynasties, ecclesiastical centres and Hiberno-Norse towns, while Muirchertach Ua Briain of Munster and Domnall Ua Lochlainn of Ailech contested supremacy. Muirchertach raided Meath and the midlands, but Connacht attacked Munster and Dublin passed to Gofraid son of Mac Arailt, strengthening Irish Sea power. In Leinster, Énna killed rival Murchad. Domnall defeated and killed Donn Sléibe Ua hEochada of Ulaid, consolidating northern dominance. Armagh suffered a major fire, then Máel Ísu died and Domnall grandson of Amalgaid succeeded him. Treacherous killings reflected political insecurity, although favourable weather produced abundance, sustaining rural and urban communities alike.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1090 Domnall Ua Lochlainn of Ailech secured hostages from leading southern rulers, marking northern ascendancy without creating a unified Irish monarchy. Muirchertach Ua Briain of Cashel soon resumed warfare, raiding Connacht and the midlands, suffering defeat in Fir Cell, and campaigning with Dublin’s Hiberno-Norse forces. Regional kings pursued local conflicts while Domnall suppressed northern rivals. Ecclesiastical life remained influential: church leaders died, relics of Colum Cille travelled to Kells with silver, and Armagh’s church of Na Ferta and many houses burned. The annals reveal rural communities burdened by armies, alongside towns, trade, scholarship, and competing regional perspectives throughout Ireland.
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Archived: 26 September 2026
Abstract
In 1089, politics remained fragmented, as Muirchertach Ua Briain of Munster sought supremacy against Ruaidrí Ua Conchobair of Connacht, Domnall Ua Máelsechlainn of Meath and rivals. Muirchertach’s Shannon fleet plundered churches but was trapped near Athlone, surrendered, and prompted a raid into Munster. Donnchad of Leinster and Dublin and Donnchad Ua Gilla Pátraic of Osraige were killed amid conflict, destabilising eastern Ireland. Warfare, feud and raids affected lordships, churches and communities. Munstermen burned Lusk, killing 180 people sheltering in its church; Kildare and other centres suffered fires. Clerical deaths, land transactions, trade, livestock, captives and Easter’s wind also illuminate society.
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