Editing Olaf Guthfrithson

{{Short description|10th-century King of Dublin}}
{{Other people|Olaf Guthfrithson or Amlaíb mac Gofraid|Olaf Guthfrithson (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2022}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=April 2017}}
{{good article}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name = Olaf Guthfrithson
| title=
| image =Óláfr Guðrøðarson (British Library Cotton MS Julius A VII, folio 35v).jpg
| image_size  = 200
| caption  =
| native_lang1     =
| native_lang1_name1=
| succession = [[Kings of Dublin|King of Dublin]]
| reign     = 934–939
| predecessor = [[Gofraid ua Ímair]]
| successor = [[Blácaire mac Gofrith|Blácaire mac Gofraid]]
| succession2 = [[Kings of Northumbria|King of Northumbria]]
| reign2     = 939–941
| predecessor2 = [[Æthelstan]] (''as King of the English'')
| successor2 = [[Amlaíb Cuarán|Olaf Cuaran]]
| spouse =
| issue = [[Cammán mac Amlaíb|Cammán]]<br />Gofraid<br />Ímar
| dynasty = [[Uí Ímair]]
| father = [[Gofraid ua Ímair]]
| mother =
| birth_date        =
| birth_place       =
| death_date   = 941
| death_place =
| place of burial = [[Auldhame]], [[Scotland]] <small>''(possibly)''</small>
}}
'''Olaf Guthfrithson''' or '''Anlaf Guthfrithson''' ({{langx|non|Óláfr Guðrøðsson}} {{IPA|non|ˈoːˌlɑːvz̠ ˈɡuðˌrøðsˌson|}}; {{langx|ang|Ánláf}}; {{langx|sga|Amlaíb mac Gofraid}}; died 941) was a  Hiberno-Scandinavian (Irish-Viking){{#tag:ref|The definition as given by [[#Downham|Downham]] is used here&nbsp;– Vikings were "people of Scandinavian culture who were active outside of Scandinavia".<ref>[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. xvi</ref>|group="nb"}} leader who ruled [[Kingdom of Dublin|Dublin]] and [[Scandinavian York|Viking Northumbria]] in the 10th century. He was the son of [[Gofraid ua Ímair]] and great-grandson of [[Ímar]], making him one of the [[Uí Ímair]]. Olaf succeeded his father as [[Kings of Dublin|King of Dublin]] in 934 and succeeded in establishing dominance over the Vikings of [[Limerick]] when he captured their king, [[Amlaíb Cenncairech]], in 937. That same year he allied with [[Constantine II of Scotland]] in an attempt to reclaim the [[Kingdom of Northumbria]] which his father had ruled briefly in 927. The forces of Olaf and Constantine were defeated by the English led by [[Æthelstan]] at the [[Battle of Brunanburh]] in 937.

Olaf returned to Ireland in 938 but after Æthelstan's death the following year Olaf left for [[York]] where he was quickly able to establish himself as king, with his brother [[Blácaire mac Gofrith|Blácaire mac Gofraid]] being left to rule in Dublin. Olaf and Æthelstan's successor [[Edmund I|Edmund]] met in 939 at [[Leicester]] where they came to an agreement regarding the division of England between them. This agreement proved short-lived, however, and within a few years Vikings had occupied the [[Five Boroughs of the Danelaw|Five Boroughs]] of [[Derby]], [[Leicester]], [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]], [[Nottingham]] and [[Stamford, Lincolnshire|Stamford]]. Olaf died in 941 and was succeeded in Northumbria by his cousin [[Amlaíb Cuarán|Olaf Cuaran]]. At the time of his death, the [[Irish annals]] title him "king of Danes" and "king of the [[Dubgaill and Finngaill|Fair Foreigners and the Dark Foreigners]]".

==Biography==
Olaf first conclusively appears in contemporary records in 933 when the annals describe him plundering [[Armagh]] on 10 November.<ref name="Hudson2004">[[#Hudson2004|Hudson (2004)]]</ref> He is then recorded as allying with Matudán mac Áeda, [[List of kings of Ulster|overking of Ulaid]] and raiding as far as [[Sliabh Beagh]], where they were met by an army led by [[Muirchertach mac Néill]] of [[Ailech]], and lost 240 men in the ensuing battle along with much of their plunder.{{#tag:ref|The number of casualties given here is that given by the ''[[Annals of the Four Masters]]'' and the ''[[Chronicon Scotorum]]''. The ''[[Annals of Clonmacnoise]]'' provide the alternative number of 1200.<ref>[[#A4M|Annals of the Four Masters]], s.a. 933</ref><ref>[[#CS|Chronicon Scotorum]], s.a. 933</ref><ref>[[#AClon|Murphy (1896)]], pp. 149–150</ref>|group="nb"}} An earlier reference to a "son of Gofraid" who plundered the monastery at [[Kildare]] in 928 might refer to Olaf but no name is given.<ref name="D243244">[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], pp. 243–244</ref> Olaf's father [[Gofraid ua Ímair]], [[Kingdom of Dublin|King of Dublin]], died in 934 and Olaf succeeded him as king.<ref name="Hudson2004"/><ref name="Cannon479">[[#Cannon|Cannon (2009)]], p. 479</ref> The following year Olaf carried out a raid at Lagore crannog in [[County Meath]], and then looted the burial chamber at [[Knowth]] the following week.<ref name="D243244"/><ref name="Hudson2004"/>

Olaf is described as "Lord of the Foreigners" by the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' in 937,<ref>[[#A4M|Annals of the Four Masters]], s.a. 937</ref> at which time he went to [[Lough Ree]] and captured [[Amlaíb Cenncairech]], [[History of Limerick|King of Limerick]], and his troops after breaking their boats.<ref name="D243244"/><ref name="Hudson2004"/> This conflict can be ascribed to rivalry between the competing Viking settlements of Dublin and Limerick, with this event marking victory for Dublin. This period is considered to be the high-point of Viking influence in Ireland.<ref>[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], pp. 41–42</ref> Having secured his position in Ireland, Olaf turned his attention to England and [[Northumbria]], which had once been ruled by Olaf's father and had been conquered in 927 by [[Æthelstan|Æthelstan of England]].<ref name="Cannon479"/> Olaf allied with [[Constantine II of Scotland]], whose kingdom had been invaded by Æthelstan in 934, and in 937, the same year as the victory over Limerick, Olaf and the Vikings of Dublin left for England.<ref name="D104106">[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 104–106</ref>

The allied forces of Olaf and Constantine met the forces of Æthelstan at the [[Battle of Brunanburh]], at a site which is the subject of much debate, although current scholarly consensus identifies the site as [[Bromborough]] in [[Cheshire]].<ref name="Hudson2004"/><ref>[[#Roffe|Roffe (2012)]], p. 120</ref> Olaf and Constantine commanded the Viking troops while Æthelstan alongside his brother [[Edmund I|Edmund]] led the English troops into the battle. Contemporary accounts indicate both sides suffered many casualties but the result was a decisive English victory. Olaf and Constantine survived the battle and returned to Ireland and Scotland respectively, but one of Constantine's sons died.<ref name="D104106"/> The battle is well-attested, with references in Irish chronicles, and a [[Battle of Brunanburh (poem)|poetic telling of the battle]] in the ''[[Anglo-Saxon Chronicle]]''.<ref>[[#A4M|Annals of the Four Masters]], s.a. 938</ref><ref>[[#ASC|Thorpe (1861)]], pp. 86–88</ref> The numerous references to it in various chronicles throughout the British Isles testify to its perceived importance at the time.<ref name="D104106"/>

The annals record Olaf's return to Ireland in 938 as well as a raid he carried out that year on [[Old Kilcullen|Kilcullen]] in modern-day [[County Kildare]], where he is said to have taken a thousand prisoners.<ref name="D243244"/> Æthelstan died in October 939 and very soon afterwards Olaf left for York where he was able to quickly establish himself as [[Scandinavian York|king of Northumbria]]. Olaf was joined in England by his cousin [[Amlaíb Cuarán|Olaf Cuaran]], and Olaf's brother [[Blácaire mac Gofrith|Blácaire]] was left to rule in Dublin while he was away.<ref name="FOP115">[[#ForteOram&Pedersen|Forte, Oram, and Pedersen (2005)]], p. 115</ref><ref name="D107110">[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], pp. 107–110</ref> [[Symeon of Durham]]'s ''[[Historia Regum]]'' records that Olaf and the new English king Edmund met at Leicester in 939 and came to an agreement on dividing England between the two of them.<ref>[[#HB|Harper-Bill (1998)]], pp. 23–24, n. 155</ref> This peace was short-lived and within a few years of the agreement the Vikings had seized the [[Five Boroughs of the Danelaw|Five Boroughs]] of [[Derby]], [[Leicester]], [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]], [[Nottingham]] and [[Stamford, Lincolnshire|Stamford]].{{#tag:ref|The exact dating of this invasion is uncertain. Symeon's ''Historia Regum'' records that it took place in 940 whereas the D-text of the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' says it occurred in 942–943, after Olaf's death.<ref name="D108110">[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], pp. 108–110</ref>|group="nb"}}<ref name="D108110"/>
In 941 the ''[[Chronicle of Melrose]]'' records that Olaf raided an ancient [[Angles (tribe)|Anglian]] church at [[Tyninghame]] in what is now the [[East Lothian]] and at the time was a part of Northumbria.<ref>[[#CoM|Stevenson (1853)]], p. 97</ref><ref>[[#Stenton|Stenton (2001)]], p. 357</ref> This attack may have been more than just a raid, and may have been intended to secure a route through Scotland upon which communication between York and Dublin was reliant.<ref>[[#ForteOram&Pedersen|Forte, Oram, and Pedersen (2005)]], p. 111</ref> Olaf died in 941 and he was succeeded in Northumbria by Olaf Cuaran.<ref name="D107110"/> In recording his death, the annals title him "king of Danes" (''Chronicon Scotorum'') and "king of the [[Dubgaill and Finngaill|Fair Foreigners and the Dark Foreigners]]" (''Annals of Clonmacnoise'').<ref>[[#CS|Chronicon Scotorum]], s.a. 941</ref><ref name="Murphy152">[[#AClon|Murphy (1896)]], p. 152</ref>

==Burial==
In 2005, a skeleton was excavated in an archaeological dig at [[Auldhame]], [[East Lothian]]. Grave goods including a belt similar to others known to have been worn in Viking-age Ireland indicate that the skeleton belonged to a high-status individual. The presence of such goods, and the age of the skeleton, has led to speculation among historians and archaeologists that the remains could be those of Olaf.<ref name="HD">{{cite news|title=Skeleton discovered may be Viking King Olaf Guthfrithsson|url=http://www.heritagedaily.com/2014/05/skeleton-discovered-may-be-viking-king-olaf-guthfrithsson/103483|access-date=14 May 2016|publisher=Heritage Daily|date=30 May 2014}}</ref> Olaf is known to have conducted raids on Auldhame and Tyninghame shortly before his death in 941.<ref>{{cite news|title=East Lothian skeleton may be 10th Century Irish Viking king|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-27633853|access-date=14 May 2016|publisher=BBC News|date=30 May 2014}}</ref> Auldhame and Tyninghame were two of several local churches dedicated to [[Baldred of Tyninghame|Saint Baldred]]. According to [[Alex Woolf]], although the skeleton cannot be definitively identified with Olaf, the date and nature of the burial make it very likely the deceased individual died as a consequence of Olaf's attacks in the area in 941. Woolf has also suggested that "there is a strong likelihood that the king’s followers hoped that by burying him in the saint’s cemetery he might have benefitted from some sort of post-mortem penance".<ref name="HD"/>

==Family==
Olaf's father is identifiable as Gofraid, who was king of Dublin between 920 and 934, and also briefly ruled Northumbria in 927.<ref name="D29">[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 29</ref><ref>[[#Hart|Hart (2004)]]</ref> Gofraid was a grandson of [[Ímar]] but no patronymic is given in the original sources. This may be because he was a child of a son of Ímar who never ruled Dublin, or he was a child of a daughter of Ímar, which in either case would mean his legitimacy to rule in the eyes of his contemporaries was dependent on the identity of his grandfather, not his parents.<ref>[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 33–34</ref> Ímar, possibly identical to [[Ivar the Boneless]], was the founder of the [[Uí Ímair]] and was one of the earliest kings of Dublin in the mid-ninth century.<ref>[[#BartlettJeffrey1997|Bartlett and Jeffrey (1997)]], p. 44</ref>

Three other individuals are identifiable as sons of Gofraid; Albann, Blácaire and Ragnall.<ref name="D29"/> Albann was killed in battle against Muirchertach mac Néill in 926.<ref>[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 238</ref> Blácaire ruled Dublin from 939 onwards, and [[Ragnall Guthfrithson|Ragnall mac Gofraid]] ruled Northumbria in 943 and 944, probably along with his cousin Olaf Cuaran, until they were driven out by [[Edmund I|Edmund I of England]].<ref name="FOP115"/><ref>[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], pp. 111–112</ref> [[John of Worcester]], writing in the twelfth century, claimed that Olaf had married a daughter of Constantine II of Scotland prior to 937, but this evidence is considered unreliable.<ref>[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 150</ref> The thirteenth century chronicler [[Roger of Wendover]] wrote that Olaf married Aldgyth, the daughter of a Northumbrian earl called Orm as a consequence of the agreement at Leicester between Olaf and King Edmund.<ref>[[#HB|Harper-Bill (1998)]], pp. 25–26, n. 166</ref>

An individual named [[Cammán mac Amlaíb]] is identifiable as a son of Olaf. The ''Annals of Ulster'' record he was defeated at a place called Dub in 960. Cammán may have been one of the meic Amlaíb (sons of Olaf) who the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' mention in 962.<ref>[[#AU|Annals of Ulster]], s.a. 960</ref><ref name="D249">[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 249</ref><ref name="D262">[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 262</ref><ref name="A4M962">[[#A4M|Annals of the Four Masters]], s.a. 962</ref> According to this account the sons of Olaf and the Ladgmanns (lawmen) came to Ireland and plundered [[Conaille Muirtheimne]] and [[Howth]]. Afterward the lawmen went to Munster to avenge their brother Oin. They continued the plunder there and were defeated by the Irish in [[Uí Liatháin]] where 365 of them died. In the same year an unnamed son of Olaf led a raid from [[Ireland's Eye]] on [[Anglesey]] and Britain.<ref name="A4M962"/><ref name="D262"/> Cammán may be identical to Sitriuc Cam, an individual who in 962 made a naval attack on Uí Cholgain, but was forced to flee back to ships after a force of Dubliners and Leinstermen overtook him and slaughtered some of his men.<ref name="D269">[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 269</ref> An individual named Gofraid mac Amlaíb recorded by the annals as dying in 963 may have been a son of Olaf or he may have been a son of [[Amlaíb Cuarán|Olaf Cuaran]].<ref>[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 253</ref> The ''Annals of Clonmacnoise'' list an Ímar, a "son of the king", among the dead at Brunanburh who might be a son of Olaf, although the origin of this list is uncertain.<ref>[[#AClon|Murphy (1896)]], p. 151</ref><ref>[[#Downham|Downham (2007)]], p. 259</ref>

===Family tree===
{{Late Ui Imair family tree}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|30em|group=nb}}

==References==

===Citations===
{{Reflist|30em}}

===Primary sources===
* {{cite web |url=http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T100005B/index.html |title=Annals of the Four Masters |year=2013 |website=[[Corpus of Electronic Texts]] |edition=16 December 2013 |publisher=[[University College Cork]] |access-date=23 November 2014 |ref=A4M}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T100001A/index.html |title=The Annals of Ulster |year=2012 |website=[[Corpus of Electronic Texts]] |edition=15 August 2012 |publisher=[[University College Cork]] |access-date=23 November 2014 |ref=AU }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.ucc.ie/celt/online/T100016/index.html |title=Chronicon Scotorum |year=2010 |website=[[Corpus of Electronic Texts]] |edition=24 March 2010 |publisher=[[University College Cork]] |access-date=26 November 2014 |ref=CS }}
* {{cite book |year=1896 |editor-last=Murphy |editor-first=D |title=The Annals of Clonmacnoise |url=https://archive.org/details/annalsofclonmacn00royauoft |publisher=[[Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland]] |location=Dublin |ref=AClon }} Accessed via [[Internet Archive]].
* {{cite book |year=1853 |editor-last=Stevenson |editor-first=Joseph |title=The Church Historians of England|volume=4, Part 1|url=https://archive.org/details/thechurchhistor104fiskuoft|publisher=Seeleys|location=London |ref=CoM}} Accessed via [[Internet Archive]].
* {{cite book |year=1861 |editor-last=Thorpe |editor-first=B |editor-link=Benjamin Thorpe |title=The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle |url=https://archive.org/details/anglosaxonchron02thor |series=Rerum Britannicarum Medii Ævi Scriptores |volume=2 |publisher=Longman, Green, Longman, and Roberts |location=London |ref=ASC }} Accessed via [[Internet Archive]].

===Secondary sources===
* {{cite book|last1=Bartlett|first1=Thomas|last2=Jeffrey|first2=Keith|title=A Military History of Ireland|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MPZiWhhAmXAC&pg=PA44|date=9 October 1997|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-62989-8|ref=BartlettJeffery1997}}
* {{cite book|last=Cannon|first=John|title=A Dictionary of British History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TYnfhTq2M7EC&pg=PA479|date=21 May 2009|publisher=OUP Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-955037-1|ref=Cannon}}
* {{cite book |last=Downham |first=Clare | author-link=Clare Downham |year=2007 |title=Viking Kings of Britain and Ireland: The Dynasty of Ívarr to A.D. 1014 |publisher=[[Dunedin Academic Press]] |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j-sWAQAAIAAJ |location=Edinburgh |isbn=978-1-903765-89-0 |ref=Downham }}
* {{cite book|last1=Forte|first1=Angelo|last2=Oram|first2=Richard D.|last3=Pedersen|first3=Frederik|title=Viking Empires|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_vEd859jvk0C&pg=PA103|date=5 May 2005|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-82992-2|ref=ForteOramPedersen}}
* {{cite book|last=Harper-Bill|first=Christopher|title=Proceedings of the Battle Conference in Dublin, 1997|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gRBAQBB5PiQC&pg=PA26|year=1998|publisher=Boydell & Brewer|isbn=978-0-85115-573-9|ref=HB}}
* {{cite ODNB |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/25543|title=Sihtric Cáech (d. 927) |last=Hart|first=Cyril|year=2004 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/25543 |access-date=6 January 2015|ref=Hart}} Subscription or [http://www.oup.com/oxforddnb/info/freeodnb/libraries/ UK public library membership] required.
* {{cite ODNB |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/20670|title=Óláf Guthfrithson (d. 941)|last=Hudson|first=Benjamin T.|year=2004 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/20670 |access-date=15 August 2015|ref=Hudson2004}} Subscription or [http://www.oup.com/oxforddnb/info/freeodnb/libraries/ UK public library membership] required.
* {{cite book|last=Roffe|first=David|title=The English and Their Legacy, 900-1200: Essays in Honour of Ann Williams|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=61BEd_de_bUC&pg=PA120|year=2012|publisher=Boydell Press|isbn=978-1-84383-794-7|ref=Roffe}}
* {{cite book|last=Stenton|first=Frank M.|title=Anglo-Saxon England|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kIwiKnT_bRQC&pg=PA357|date=1971 |edition=3rd|publisher=OUP Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-280139-5|ref=Stenton}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal|journal=Northern History|first=Kevin|last=Halloran|title=Anlaf Guthfrithson at York: A Non-existent Kingship?|volume=50|number=2|date=December 2013|publisher=University of Leeds|doi=10.1179/0078172X13Z.00000000042|pages=180–185|s2cid=154514458 }}
*Capener, D.H (2014) ''Brunanburh and the Routes to Dingesmere'', Countyvise

==External links==
* [http://celt.ucc.ie/index.html CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts] at [[University College Cork]]. The '''Corpus of Electronic Texts''' includes the ''Annals of Ulster'' and ''the Four Masters'', the ''Chronicon Scotorum'' and the ''Book of Leinster'' as well as Genealogies, and various Saints' Lives. Most are translated into English, or translations are in progress.

{{s-start}}
{{s-hou|[[House of Ivar]]}}
{{s-reg}}
{{succession box
| title=[[Kings of Dublin|King of Dublin]]
| before=[[Gofraid ua Ímair]]
| after=[[Blácaire mac Gofrith|Blácaire mac Gofraid]]
| years=934–939}}
{{succession box
| title=[[Kings of Jórvík|King of Northumbria]]
| before=[[Æthelstan]] (''as King of the English'')
| after=[[Amlaíb Cuarán|Olaf Cuaran]]
| years=939–941}}
{{s-end}}

{{Northumbrian Monarchs}}
{{Dublin Monarchs}}
{{Kings of the Isles}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olaf Guthfrithson}}
[[Category:941 deaths]]
[[Category:Monarchs of Dublin]]
[[Category:Monarchs of Jorvik]]
[[Category:10th-century Irish monarchs]]
[[Category:10th-century English monarchs]]
[[Category:10th-century rulers of the Kingdom of the Isles]]
[[Category:People from County Dublin]]
[[Category:Uí Ímair]]
[[Category:Norse monarchs]]
[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
[[Category:10th-century Vikings]]