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MAC CRINAN Duncan I
Birth: ABT 1001 of Atholl, Perthshire, England
Death: 14 Aug 1040 Iona, Scotland
Cause of Death: killed by Macbeth
Burial: Iona, Scotland
Notes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duncan_I_of_Scotland
Donnchad mac Crinain (Modern Gaelic: Donnchadh mac Crìonain;[2] anglicised as
Duncan I, and nicknamed An t-Ilgarach, "the Diseased" or "the Sick";[3] ca. 1001 –
14 August 1040)[1] was king of Scotland (Alba) from 1034 to 1040. He is the historical
basis of the "King Duncan" in Shakespeare's play Macbeth.
Life[edit]
He was son of Crínán, hereditary lay abbot of Dunkeld, and Bethóc, daughter of king
Máel Coluim mac Cináeda (Malcolm II).
Unlike the "King Duncan" of Shakespeare's Macbeth, the historical Duncan appears
to have been a young man. He followed his grandfather Malcolm as king after the
latter's death on 25 November 1034, without apparent opposition. He may have been
Malcolm's acknowledged successor or Tànaiste as the succession appears to have
been uneventful.[4] Earlier histories, following John of Fordun, supposed that Duncan
had been king of Strathclyde in his grandfather's lifetime, between 1018 and 1034,
ruling the former Kingdom of Strathclyde as an appanage. Modern historians discount
this idea.[5]
An earlier source, a variant of the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba (CK-I), gives
Duncan's wife the Gaelic name Suthen.[6] Whatever his wife's name may have been,
Duncan had at least two sons. The eldest, Malcolm III (Máel Coluim mac Donnchada)
was king from 1058 to 1093, the second Donald III (Domnall Bán, or "Donalbane")
was king afterwards. Máel Muire, Earl of Atholl is a possible third son of Duncan,
although this is uncertain.[7]
The early period of Duncan's reign was apparently uneventful, perhaps a
consequence of his youth. Macbeth (Mac Bethad mac Findláich) is recorded as having
been his dux, today rendered as "duke" and meaning nothing more than the rank
between prince and marquess, but then still having the Roman meaning of "war
leader". In context — "dukes of Francia" had half a century before replaced the
Carolingian kings of the Franks and in England the over-mighty Godwin of Wessex was
called a dux — this suggests that Macbeth may have been the power behind the
throne.[8]
In 1039, Duncan led a large Scots army south to besiege Durham, but the expedition
ended in disaster. Duncan survived, but the following year he led an army north into
Moray, Macbeth's domain, apparently on a punitive expedition against Moray.[9] There
he was killed in action, at Bothnagowan, now Pitgaveny, near Elgin, by the men of
Moray led by Macbeth, probably on 14 August 1040.[10] He is thought to have been
buried at Elgin[11] before later relocation to the Isle of Iona.
Depictions in fiction[edit]
Duncan is depicted as an elderly King in Macbeth by William Shakespeare. He is
killed in his sleep by the protagonist, Macbeth.
In the historical novel Macbeth the King by Nigel Tranter, Duncan is portrayed as a
schemer who is fearful of Macbeth as a possible rival for the throne. He tries to
assassinate Macbeth by poisoning and then when this fails, attacks his home with an
army. In self-defence Macbeth meets him in battle and kills him in personal combat.
In the animated television series Gargoyles he is depicted as a weak and conniving
king who assassinates those who he believes threaten his rule. He even tries to
assassinate Macbeth. However like in actual history he is killed in battle.
Parents
DE MORMAER Crinan "the Thane" (Albanock) (Grimus) ( 978 - 1045)
____ Bethoc (Beatrix) (ABT 984 - )
Siblings
____ Maldred (ABT 1000 - ABT 1045)
MAC CRINAN Duncan I (ABT 1001 - 14 Aug 1040)
----- ----- (daughter of Crinan) (ABT 1010 - )
Marriage To FITZSIWARD Sibyl (ABT 1017 - 1070)
m. 1030 Scotland
Notes
Parents
BJORNSSON Sigurd (Siward) "Digera" (ABT 996 - 1055)
OF NORTHUMBERLAND (OF BERNICIA) Aelfleda (ABT 1000 - )
Children by FITZSIWARD Sibyl ABT 1017 - 1070
____ Malcolm III "Ceanmor" (ABT 1033 - 13 Nov 1093)
____ Duncan (ABT 1035 - )
____ Donald III "Bane" (1039 - 1099)
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