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Godred Crovan (died 1095), known in Gaelic as Gofraid Crobán, Gofraid Meránach, and Gofraid Méránach, was a Norse Gaelic ruler of the kingdoms of Dublin and the Isles. Although his precise parentage has not completely been proven, he was certainly an Uí Ímair dynast, and a descendant of Amlaíb Cúarán, King of Northumbria and Dublin. Godred first appears on record in the context of supporting the Norwegian invasion of England in 1066. Following the collapse of this campaign, Godred is recorded to have arrived on Mann, at the court of Gofraid mac Sitriuc, King of the Isles, a likely kinsman of his. During the 1070s, the latter died and was succeeded by his son, Fingal. Within the decade, Godred violently seized the kingship for himself, although the exact circumstances surrounding this takeover are uncertain. By 1091, Godred attained the kingship of Dublin, and thereby secured complete control of the valuable trade routes through the Irish Sea region. Godred's expansion may be further perceptible in the Clyde estuary and Galloway, and may well have forced the English to consolidate control of Cumberland in an effort to secure their western maritime flank. Godred appears to have drawn his power from the Hebrides; and archaeological evidence from Mann reveals that, in comparison to the decades previous to his takeover, the island seems to have enjoyed a period of relative peace. During his reign, Godred appears to have lent military assistance to Gruffudd ap Cynan, King of Gwynedd, a probable kinsman, who was then locked in continuous conflicts with Welsh rivals and encroaching English magnates. The earliest known Bishops of the Isles date from about the time of Godred's reign, although it is almost certain that earlier ecclesiastes held this position. It may have been just prior to Godred's accession in the Isles, whilst Dublin was under the ultimate control of Toirdelbach Ua Briain, King of Munster, that Dublin and the Isles were ecclesiastically separated once and for all. Godred's rule in Dublin came to an abrupt end in 1094 with his expulsion at the hands of Muirchertach Ua Briain, King of Munster, a man who may have even driven Godred from Mann as well. Documentary evidence reveals that the last decade of the eleventh century saw an upsurge in plague and famine. According to Irish sources, one quarter of Ireland perished from pestilence in 1095 alone. One of the fatalities was Godred himself, who died on Islay, an apparent power centre in the Isles. Godred's greatest impact on history may have been his founding of the Crovan dynasty, his patrilineal descendants who ruled in the Isles for almost two centuries. Godred was an important maternal ancestor of Clann Somairle, a family that held power in the Isles centuries after the final extinction of the Crovan dynasty. As such, he may be identical to Gofraid mac Fergusa, an apparent genealogical construct claimed as a Clann Somairle ancestor. Godred may well be identical to the celebrated King Orry of Manx legend, a figure traditionally credited with instituting the Manx legal system. Godred and King Orry are associated with numerous historic and prehistoric sites on Mann and Islay.

While the familial origins of Godred Crovan aren't completely proven, it appears certain that he was a direct descendant of Amlaíb Cúarán, King of Northumbria and Dublin. Although the thirteenth to fourteenth century Chronicle of Mann calls him in Latin " filius Haraldi nigri de Ysland", implying that his father was named Aralt, the fourteenth century Annals of Tigernach instead calls him in Gaelic " mac Maic Arailt", contrarily implying that it was Godred's grandfather who was named Aralt. nephew, or brother of Ímar mac Arailt, King of Dublin. However, the early thirteenth century pedigree Achau Brenhinoedd a Thywysogion Cymru in the Welsh collection of genealogical tracts records "Gwrthryt Mearch" (Godred Crovan) as the son of "Harallt Ddu" (Harald "The Black" of Islay), who in turn was the son of "Ifor Gamle" (Ímar mac Arailt). As such, it appears that Godred was not the son, nephew or brother, but, in fact, the grandson of Ímar mac Arailt, King of Dublin, patrilineal descendant of Amlaíb Cúarán, King of Northumbria and Dublin, and member of the Uí Ímair. The chronicle's passage may further cast light on Godred's familial origins. Although "Ysland" may represent Iceland, there is no other evidence linking Godred to this island. where he is otherwise known to have ended his life. Another possibility is that "Ysland" represents Ireland, which, if correct, would evidence Godred's close familial links with that particular island. Whatever the case, according to the same source, he had been brought up on Mann. When Godred is first noted by the Latin Chronicle of Mann, he is accorded the epithet "Crouan" or "Crovan". The origin and meaning of this name are uncertain. It may well be derived from the Gaelic crob bhán ("white handed"). Another Gaelic origin may be cró bán ("white blooded"), in reference to being very pale. Alternately, it could originate from the Gaelic crúbach ("claw"). If the epithet is instead Old Norse in origin, it could be derived from kruppin ("cripple"). In several Irish annals, Godred is accorded the epithet meranach. This word could represent either the Gaelic meránach ("mad", "confused", "giddy"); or else méránach (which can also be rendered mérach), a word derived from mér ("finger" or "toe"). If meranach indeed corresponds to the latter meaning, the epithet would appear to mirror Crouan/Crovan, and imply something remarkable about Godred's hands. Godred and his patrilineal royal descendants, who reigned in the Isles for about two centuries, are known to modern scholars as the Crovan dynasty, a name coined after Godred himself. The combination of Old Norse personal names and Gaelic epithets accorded to Godred, and his dynastic descendants, partly evidence the hybrid nature of the Norse Gaelic Kingdom of the Isles.

The Annals of Tigernach and the Chronicle of Mann evidence Godred's conquest of the Kingdom of Dublin in about 1091. Specifically, the former source accords him the title "King of Dublin" that year, whilst the latter source claims that he subjugated all of Dublin and much of Leinster. Although the chronicle's statement regarding Leinster is almost certainly an exaggeration, it may well refer to the seizure of the full extent of Fine Gall, and the extension of royal authority over adjoining regions. Dublin's political affiliation at about this period in time is uncertain. In 1088, Donnchad mac Domnaill Remair, King of Leinster seems to have utilised troops from Dublin in his attack on Waterford. Whilst within the same year, troops from Dublin, Waterford, and Wexford were repulsed in an attack on Cork by the Uí Echach Mumain. The following year, Donnchad is further accorded the title rí Gall, which suggests that he ruled Dublin by this point. Muirchertach Ua Briain, King of Munster certainly gained authority over Dublin within the year, although the fact that the annal entry evidencing Godred's kingship there in 1091 contains no verb could suggest that he too reigned in Dublin as early as 1089. Whatever the case, Godred's acquisition of this coastal settlement may well have been a strike of sheer opportunism in which he took advantage of the ongoing conflict between the kingdoms of Munster and Leinster. His probable familial links with Dublin could have contributed to his remarkable success as well, and it is possible that the Dubliners considered this conquest as a restoration of the kingdom's royal family. Certainly his conquests in the Irish Sea region amounted to the reunification of the Uí Ímair imperium,

Despite Godred's apparent ancestral connections to the kingdoms of Dublin and the Isles, his rise to power could well have been driven by economic realities as much as royal aspirations. Dublin was one of the wealthiest ports in western Europe. By the end of the eleventh century, it was the most important population centre in Ireland. There appear to have been three main routes in the region: one running from southern Wales to south eastern Ireland (connecting the settlements of Waterford and Wexford in Ireland, with Bristol and St Davids in Wales); another route running from the river Dee in northern Wales to Mann itself, and to the rivers Liffey and Boyne in Ireland (thereby connecting the ports of Chester and Holyhead in Wales, with those of Dublin and Drogheda in Ireland); the third trade route running perpendicular to the aforementioned, extending south to the Continent and north through the Hebrides to Iceland, Orkney, Shetland, Scandinavia, and the Baltic region. Godred's conquest of Dublin, therefore, could have been undertaken in the context of an Islesman securing possession of the region's southernmost routes, thereby giving him total control of the Irish Sea trade nexus. a statement implying his maritime dominance over contemporaries. The chronicle's record of Godred's death on Islay could indicate that the island formed a secondary power centre in the Isles. The fact that Historia Gruffud vab Kenan notes that Gruffudd travelled into the Isles to obtain military assistance from Gothrei could also be evidence that Godred's headquarters was located there. The record of Godred's death on Islay further suggests that he may well have been buried on the nearby holy island of Iona, the burial place of his like named grandson, Gofraid mac Amlaíb, King of Dublin and the Isles.