Máel Sechnaill, Munster and the Vikings: 853–862

Historians have long seen the mid-ninth century as a turning-point in Irish history. However, to date no detailed analysis has been undertaken of the political interactions between Máel Sechnaill (king of Tara) and the Vikings between the coming of Amlaíb of Laithlind (fl. 853–871) in 853 and the death of Máel Sechnaill in 862, a crucial period that witnessed both the emergence of the Viking kingdom based at Dublin as a significant force in Irish politics and Máel Sechnaill’s attempts to assert himself as king of Ireland. The present article aims to fill this important gap in the historiography.