Bridei son of Maelchon (died c. 586) was King of the Picts from 554 to 584. Sources are vague or contradictory regarding him, but it is believed that his court was near Loch Ness and that he may have been a Christian. Several contemporaries also claimed the title "King of the Picts". He died in the mid-580s, possibly in battle, and was succeeded by Gartnait son of Domelch.
Bridei son of Maelchon was King of the Picts until his death around AD 584–586. Other forms of his name include Brude son of Melcho and, in Irish sources, Bruide son of Maelchú and Bruidhe son of Maelchon. He was first mentioned in the Irish annals from 558 to 560, where the Annals of Ulster report "the migration before Máelchú's son, king Bruide". An earlier entry, reporting the death of "Bruide son of Máelchú" in the Annals of Ulster for 505 is presumed to be an error. The Ulster annalist does not say who fled, but the later Annals of Tigernach refers to "the flight of the Scots before Bruide son of Máelchú" in 558. This uncertainty has provoked considerable speculation; in one version the Annals of Ulster is said to associate this with the death of Gabrán mac Domangairt. [1]
Bridei is suggested to have been the son of Maelgwn Gwynedd by John Morris in his The Age of Arthur, where he is referred to in passing as "... Bridei, son of Maelgwn, the mighty king of north Wales, ...". [2] Though the book has been a commercial success, it is disparaged by historians as an unreliable source of "misleading and misguided" information. [3]
Bridei's death was reported in the 580s, perhaps in battle against Pictish rivals in Circinn, an area thought to correspond with the Mearns. [4] The lists of kings in the Pictish Chronicle agree that Bridei was followed by Gartnait son of Domelch.
Bridei appears in Adomnán's Life of Saint Columba as a contemporary and as one of the chief kings in Scotland. [5] Adomnán's account of Bridei is problematic as it does not mention whether Bridei was already a Christian, and if not, whether Columba converted him. [6] The archaeological discoveries at Portmahomack, showing that there was a monastic community there from around 550, provide some support for the idea that Bridei was either already a Christian, at least in name, or was converted by Columba.
Bridei was not the only "king of the Picts" during his lifetime. The death of Galam—called "Cennalath, king of the Picts"—is recorded in 580 in the Annals of Ulster, four years before Bridei's death. [7] In addition, Adomnán mentions the presence of the "under-king of Orkney" at Bridei's court. [8] The Annals of Ulster report two expeditions to Orkney during Bridei's reign, in 580 and 581. [9]
The location of the court of Bridei's kingdom is not certain. Adomnán's account states that after leaving the royal court, Columba came to the River Ness and that the court was located atop a steep rock. Accordingly, it has been suggested that Bridei's chief residence was at Craig Phadrig, which is to the west of the modern city of Inverness and overlooks the Beauly Firth. [10] Excavation at Craig Phadrig has shown that its ramparts were in a poor state of repair during Bridei's time, however, and it is therefore unlikely to have been a royal fortress during the period. [11] Bridei's kingdom may also have corresponded with what would later become Fortriu. [12]
Juliet Marillier's trilogy The Bridei Chronicles is written as a combination of history, fiction, and informed guesswork regarding this king's rise to power and rule. Her novels also describe events in the life of Bridei III.
Dál Riata or Dál Riada was a Gaelic kingdom that encompassed the western seaboard of Scotland and north-eastern Ireland, on each side of the North Channel. At its height in the 6th and 7th centuries, it covered what is now Argyll in Scotland and part of County Antrim in Northern Ireland. After a period of expansion, Dál Riata eventually became associated with the Gaelic Kingdom of Alba.
Áedán mac Gabráin, also written as Aedan, was a king of Dál Riata from c. 574 until c. 609 AD. The kingdom of Dál Riata was situated in modern Argyll and Bute, Scotland, and parts of County Antrim, Ireland. Genealogies record that Áedán was a son of Gabrán mac Domangairt.
The Battle of Dun Nechtain or Battle of Nechtansmere was fought between the Picts, led by King Bridei Mac Bili, and the Northumbrians, led by King Ecgfrith, on 20 May 685.
The Battle of Two Rivers was fought between the Picts and Northumbrians in the year 671. The exact battle site is unknown. It marked the end of the Pictish rebellion early in the reign of Ecgfrith, with a decisive victory for the Northumbrians. Attestation of the battle is limited to the account in Stephen of Ripon's Vita Sancti Wilfrithi.
Fortriu was a Pictish kingdom recorded between the 4th and 10th centuries. It was traditionally believed to be located in and around Strathearn in central Scotland, but is more likely to have been based in the north, in the Moray and Easter Ross area. Fortriu is a term used by historians as it is not known what name its people used to refer to their polity. Historians also sometimes use the name synonymously with Pictland in general.
Ciniod, Cináed or Cinadhon, son of Uuredech, was king of the Picts from 763 until 775.
Bridei son of Beli ; died 692) was king of Fortriu and of the Picts from 671 until 692. His reign marks the start of the period known to historians as the Verturian hegemony, a turning point in the history of Scotland, when the uniting of Pictish provinces under the over-kingship of the kings of Fortriu saw the development of a strong Pictish state and identity encompassing most of the peoples north of the Forth.
Bridei son of Der-Ilei was king of the Picts from 697 until 706. He became king when Taran was deposed in 697.
Nechtan grandson of Uerb, was king of the Picts from 595 to around 616, and may be the same person as the Neithon son of Guipno who ruled the kingdom of Alt Clut.
Gartnait, son of Domelch, was a king of the Picts from 584 to 595.
The style of the Scottish sovereign refers to the styles and forms of address used by Scottish royalty, specifically the monarchs of Scotland from the earliest to the present, including monarchs from the Pictish period to the British period.
Taran son of Ainftech was a King of the Picts from 693 until 697, according to the Pictish king-lists. His name is the same as that of the Gaulish thunder-god, Taranis.
Gartnait son of Donuel was king of the Picts from 657 until 663.
Galam Cennalath was a king of the Picts from 550 to 555.
Drest son of Donuel was king of the Picts from c. 663 until 672. Like his brother and predecessor Gartnait son of Donuel, and Gartnait's predecessor Talorgan son of Eanfrith, he reigned as a puppet king under the Northumbrian king Oswiu. Gartnait and Drest may have been sons of Domnall Brecc, who was king of Dál Riata from c.629 until he was killed in 642.
Gartnait son of Foith or son of Uuid was a king of the Picts from 631 to 635.
Bridei son of Uuid was a king of the Picts from 635 to 641.
Talorg son of Uuid was a king of the Picts from 641 to 653.
Craig Phadrig is a forested hill on the western edge of Inverness, Scotland. A hill fort on the summit is generally supposed to have been the base of the Pictish king Bridei mac Maelchon. The hill rises to 172 metres (564 ft) above sea level, and overlooks the Beauly Firth to the north and the mouth of the River Ness to the north-east. The hill is currently owned and managed by Forestry and Land Scotland.