An island was once partly ruled by a great Empire. After the Empire fell, a Celtic tribe settled on this island. Centuries later, their King set the foundation for a nation, that is no longer one.
Story in the evening ...
Cináed mac Ailpín was born around 800 to Ailpín, King of Dál Riata. Dál Riata was a Gaelic Kingdom in the northern part of Great Britain. The southern part was once a Roman province but after the departure of the Roman troops around 410, it was overrun by Germanic tribes. 1/10
The Gaels were a Celtic people who had settled in present day Ireland. In fifth century AD, one of the Gaelic tribes, called Scotis by the Romans, crossed the North Channel and established themselves in the north of Great Britain, setting up the Kingdom of Dál Riata. 2/10
By Cináed's time, Dál Riata had lost its Irish provinces and was limited to Great Britain. They were one of the many Kingdoms in the northern part of Great Britain, alongside the Kingdom of Picts, the Brythonic Kingdom of Strathclyde and the Anglican Kingdom of Northumbria. 3/10
In 834, Alpín died fighting the Picts. With the decline of Dál Riata in Ireland, they had faced with similar struggles against their neighbours as well. Pictish King, Óengus mac Fergusso, had become the overlord of Dál Riata in the 8th century. 4/10
Cináed inherited a weak Dál Riata from his father and looked at their neighbours for expansion. He got the opportunity in 843, due to an ambiguity over succession. Though the circumstances are not entirely clear, Cináed had become the King of Picts by 850. 5/10
King Uuen mac Óengusa of the Picts had died in battle against the Vikings in 839. It is possible Cináed had a claim to the title or the Picts were weak after their defeat. There are other rival Kings recorded as well. But by 850, Cináed had united Dál Riata & Picts as Alba. 6/10
The merger led to more Scoti moving east to the land of the Picts and a slow merger of the communities. King Cináed also headed south towards Lothian in Northumbria capturing Melrose and Dunbar, but also had to deal with Strathclyde and Viking raids as well. 7/10
King Cináed died in 858 and was succeeded by his brother, Domnall. Cináed's sons, Causantin and Áed, also became Kings of Alba later and it was under their descendants that Kingdom of Alba transformed into the Kingdom of Scotland. 8/10
The line of King Ailpín ended with Máel Coluim in 1034, after which his grandsons via daughters, Donnchadh of Atholl and MacBheatha of Moray vied for rule. Scotland had annexed Strathclyde by then. In the end, it was Máel Coluim, son of Donnchadh, who came victor in 1058. 9/10
In 1603, the King of Scotland inherited the crown of England. In 1707, the two crowns were united as one to form Kingdom of Great Britain, as moved by the Parliaments of the England and Scotland after voting, and ending Scotland's existence as a distinct nation. 10/10
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