Connacht Under Siege
The events are preserved principally in the Irish annals, including the Annals of Ulster, Annals of Tigernach, Annals of Inisfallen and the later Annals of the Four Masters. They agree on the broad sequence but differ in names, emphasis and detail. The Annals of Inisfallen, written from a Munster perspective, present the campaign as a devastating assault on Connacht from several directions. The Annals of Tigernach provide the fullest description of the opposing armies and lavish praise upon the fallen Connacht king. Such language preserves political memory rather than neutral reporting. Exact days are not supplied, and places such as Turloch Adhnach and Turloch Sampaite cannot be identified with complete confidence. What can responsibly be said is that the campaign and Áed’s death were placed in 1067 by independent annalistic traditions.