UA CONCHOBAIR, TAIRRDELBACH (1088–1156)Munster remained tempestuous. And the tide was turn-
ing. After defeating Desmond during 1131, Tairrdelbach
was confronted by the armies of Munster and the
north. While Tairrdelbach dealt masterfully with
them, defeating the Ulstermen first before scattering
the Munster army, their audacity was unsettling. The
year 1132 proved that Tairrdelbach was just not
strong enough to defeat his rivals decisively. The year
began well with victories over Munster and a fresh
division of Mide, but the balance tipped against him
when Ua Ruairc and the Conmaicne joined Conchobar
Ua Briain of Thomond (d. 1142). A Munster fleet
burnt Galway, and Ua Briain and Mac Carthaig were
to sack Tairrdelbach’s capital at Dunmore in 1133,
while Ua Máelsechlainn destroyed his bridge at Athlone,
compelling him to conclude a year’s peace with Ua
Briain. For all his brilliance, Tairrdelbach was on the
ropes when his enemies closed for the kill in 1134,
leading him to finally acknowledge reality and dis-
patch Bishop Muiredach Ua Dubthaig (d. 1150) to
Mac Carthaig to sue for peace. Tairrdelbach’s defeat
encouraged Ua Ruairc, the Conmaicne, and Ua Briain
to test the territorial integrity of Connacht in 1135,
fanning also the ambitions of some sons. During
1136, an ill Tairrdelbach arrested his son Ruaidrí Ua
Conchobair (d. 1198) and authorized his intended heir
Conchobar to blind another son, Áed Ua Conchobair.
However, Connacht’s fortunes remained in the dol-
drums. During 1137, Connacht was “laid waste from
Assaroe to the Shannon and to Echtach of Munster.”
The first sign of a Connacht recovery came after Mac
Carthaig’s killing, as evidenced by Tairrdelbach’s
Mide campaign of 1138. During 1139, he worked
hard to revitalize his forces, employing them to
improve Connacht’s natural defenses by diverting the
Suck to form a flood plain. He also dealt with rebels,
blinding Donnchad Ua Máelruanaid of Mag Luirg
(d. 1144).
The clearest sign of Tairrdelbach’s return to form
came in 1140. Then Archbishop Gilla mac Liag
(Gelasius) of Armagh (d. 1173) visited Connacht and
received tribute as primate of all Ireland. Reinvigorated,
Tairrdelbach then made a false peace with Ua
Máelsechlainn and threw a new bridge over the Shannon
at Athlone. He swept into the Mide subkingdom of
Tethbae, plundering it mercilessly. Not content with that,
he banished Ua Máelsechlainn. Although 1141 began
badly with Ua Briain burning much of west Connacht,
Tairrdelbach recovered and consolidated his midland
hegemony through the restoration of Ua Máelsechlainn
to Mide and the taking of Ua Ruairc’s hostages. Ua
Briain’s death in 1142 bolstered Tairrdelbach’s for-
tunes, allowing him again to claim the high kingship.
In 1143, he consolidated his resurgent power by
defeating Tairrdelbach Ua Briain of Thomond at
Roevehagh and exiling Ua Máelsechlainn to Munster.
To emphasize his resurgence, Tairrdelbach granted
new lands to the church, but controversially replaced
Ua Máelsechlainn as king of Mide with his heir
Conchobar. On the home front, Tairrdelbach faced
considerable pressure from Bishop Muiredach Ua
Dubthaig about his continued imprisonment of his son
Ruaidrí. Although Tairrdelbach promised to release
Ruaidrí, the assassination of Conchobar in Mide during
1144 forced him to do it earlier than expected. In Mide
he hunted the assassins down, and divided that king-
dom before making peace with Tairrdelbach Ua Briain,
whereupon he proceeded to subdue Leinster.
Peace was short-lived as Mide again rebelled in
1145, leading Tairrdelbach to dispatch his trusted son
Domnall Midech Ua Conchobair (d. 1176) to subdue it.
Anxiously, Tairrdelbach Ua Briain watched as Connacht
tightened its grip upon the Shannon and the adjoining
midlands. Ua Briain then challenged Connacht’s over-
lordship in the midlands, but was forced to retreat and
content himself with a raid into Connacht. More seri-
ously, Ua Briain gathered a combined Munster and
Ostman fleet to break Connacht’s grip on the Shannon.
But Tairrdelbach hit first, sinking Ua Briain’s fleet at
the mouth of the Shannon, ensuring Connacht’s dom-
inance into 1146 despite the emergence of an alliance
between Mide, Munster, Ua Ruairc, and the Conmai-
cne. Even though Tairrdelbach easily defeated Munster,
Ua Ruairc’s defection was embarrassing as it stoked
trouble in Mide, contributing to Domnall Midech’s
defeat in Tethbae during 1147. Tairrdelbach attempted
to make peace with Ua Ruairc during 1148, but failed
due to the determination of Domnall Ua Fergail to kill
the Bréifne king. But in 1149 a bigger threat emerged
to Connacht in the person of Muirchertach Mac
Lochlainn (sl. 1166).
The aging Tairrdelbach reluctantly recognized Mac
Lochlainn’s dominance in 1150, sending him hos-
tages. Even so he was still a force to be reckoned with
on the battlefield, plundering Munster that year. Early
in 1151, Tairrdelbach welcomed Archbishop Gilla of
Armagh to Connacht, presenting him with a golden
ring. But it was on the battlefield that Tairrdelbach
had his greatest success in 1151. Ua Briain invaded
Desmond, forcing Diarmait Mac Carthaig (sl. 1185)
to ask Tairrdelbach for help. Secretly, Tairrdelbach
and Diarmait Mac Murchada of Leinster (d. 1171)
marched into Desmond and met Mac Carthaig before
tracking Ua Briain. Using mist as cover, Tairrdelbach
attacked Ua Briain’s rearguard, throwing his army into
confusion. The annals record that 7,000 men fell and
Ua Briain fled. Even though this victory must have
been the pinnacle of Tairrdelbach’s military career,
Muirchertach Mac Lochlainn invaded Connacht
through the Curlew Mountains. Prudently, the old king