FÍACHNAE MAC BÁETÁINfrom the fourteenth century the earls of Kildare,
Ormond, and Desmond all personally controlled lib-
erties. These liberties are traditionally seen as encour-
aging factionalism between “over-mighty” subjects.
However, given the weakness of royal government in
Ireland, it was quite possibly the creation of paid pri-
vate armies and the power conferred by liberties that
ensured the endurance of English control over much
of the country.
These are subjects that have been largely neglected
since A. J. Otway-Ruthven first examined feudal insti-
tutions in Ireland in the 1950s, and the time is ripe to
bring current research on late medieval society into an
Irish context. The importance of doing so may lie in
the fact that so-called bastard feudal connections strad-
dle the two cultures of medieval Ireland. The Gaelic
lords may have rejected what we think of as classic
feudalism, but the student of bastard feudalism would
find the private armies of Gaelic lords, particularly the
mercenary galloglass who dominate the military his-
tory of the late medieval lordship, surprisingly familiar.
From the second half of the fourteenth century onward,
the records of the earls of Kildare and Ormond are
littered with agreements of retinue between Anglo-
Irish and Gaelic lords. Testament to the success of the
system is its endurance to the end of the medieval
period. The power network of the earls of Kildare
which criss-crossed the cultural frontierwas a chal-
lenge to the authority of the Tudor monarchy and
provoked a show of unprecedented strength by Henry
VIII to bring it down.
PETER CROOKS
References and Further Reading
Bloch, Marc. Feudal Society, trans. by L. A. Manyon. London:
Routledge and K. Paul, 1961.
Carpenter, David, P. R. Coss, and David Crouch. “Debate: Bas-
tard Feudalism Revised.” Past and Present, 131, (1991):
165 −203.
Ellis, Steven. “Taxation and Defence in Late Medieval Ireland:
The Survival of Scutage.” Journal of the Royal Society of
Antiquaries 107 (1977): 5−29.
. “The Destruction of the Liberties: Some Further Evi-
dence.” Bulletin of the Institute of Historical Research 54,
no. 130 (1981): 150−161.
Frame, Robin. “Military Service in the Lordship of Ireland,
1290 −1360: Institutions and Society on the Anglo-Gaelic
frontier.” In Medieval Frontier Societies, edited by Robert
Bartlett and Angus MacKay. Oxford: Clarendon Press,
1989.
Hicks, Michael. Bastard Feudalism. Essex: Longman, 1995.
Otway-Ruthven, A. J. “Knight Service in Ireland.” Journal of
the Royal Society of Antiquaries 89 (1959): 1−15.
. “Royal Service in Ireland.” Journal of the Royal Society
of Antiquaries 98 (1968): 37−46.
Reynolds, Susan. Fiefs and Vassals: The Medieval Evidence
Reconsidered. Oxford: University Press, 1994.
See also Anglo-Norman Invasion; Chief Governors;
Factionalism; Kings and KingshipFÍACHNAE MAC BÁETÁIN
Fíachnae mac Báetáin, also known as Fíachnae Lurgan,
was a member of the Dál nAraidi, the main dynasty of
the people known as Cruithni. The Dál nAraidi kings,
including Fíachnae, resided at Ráith Mór in Mag Line
(Moylinny), east of Antrim town. Along with another
Cruthni dynasty they supplied a number of over kings
of Ulster between the sixth and the tenth centuries.
However, most kings of Ulster were supplied by the
“true Ulaid,” of which the Dál Fiatach in eastern Down
were the ruling dynasty. Fíachnae mac Báetáin’s main
enemy in Ulster was Fíachnae mac Demmáin of the
Dál Fiatach dynasty. After winning many victories over
his rival, Fíachnae mac Báetáin was finally defeated
and slain by him in 626.
According to the Annals of the Four Masters, Fíach-
nae, whose rule was to span more than three decades,
killed Áed Dub mac Suibni and succeeded him in the
Ulster kingship in 588. In 597, in one of his many
recorded victories in the Annals of Ulster, Fíachnae
was active as far south as Slíab Cuae in Munster. In
the Book of Leinster under Ríg Ulad (kings of Ulster)
Fíachnae mac Báetáin can be found between Áed Dub
and Fíachnae mac Demmáin as well as under the head-
ing Rig Dail Araide (kings of Dál nAraidi).
We may deduce from this that Fíachnae was an
important and powerful king, but is it possible that he
achieved the ultimate title, that of King of Tara? Fíach-
nae is not included in Middle-Irish Tara king-lists,
while several suspect Uí Neill dynasts are. The earlier
Baile Chuinn (Conn’s vision) king list, on the other
hand, omits many of these Uí Neill kings from the late
sixth and early seventh centuries. In their place it
includes some unidentified names, such as Féchno.
F. J. Byrne suggests that “it is not altogether impossible
that he [Fíachnae mac Báetáin] is the mysterious
Féchno who appears as Diarmait mac Cerbaill’s suc-
cessor to the high-kingship of Tara in the Baile
Chuind.” Some middle-Irish sagas would certainly
seem to agree with this suggestion. One such tale actu-
ally states that Fíachnae was king of Ireland and
Scotland. It may be concluded that Fíachnae mac
Báetáin was a powerful Ulster king who extended his
influence across the sea and into the midlands and
south of Ireland to such an extent that he may at least
have been a contender for the kingship of Tara.
In addition to the historical record, Fíachnae
appears in the literature as father of the enigmatic
Mongán mac Fíachnai. In the tale Compert Mongáin,
Fíachnae goes to the aid of his ally Áedán mac
Gabráin, king of Dál Ríata in Scotland, in a war against