Fínnechta's Accession
Archived: 2 November 2026
Abstract
In 675 CE, a battle brought down Cenn Fáelad mac Blathmaic and raised his cousin Fínnechta Fledach mac Dúnchada to the kingship of Tara. The event was a decisive change within the dominant southern branch of the Uí Néill, rather than the founding of a new Irish state or the conquest of a unified island. The contemporary annalistic tradition is terse but emphatic: Cenn Fáelad was killed, Fínnechta was victorious, and Fínnechta then began to reign. For a year with few securely dated Irish happenings, this violent transfer of power is its central historical fact.A Battle With Uneasy GeographyThe principal
