Áed mac Cináeda

Áed mac Cináeda, was a king of the Picts who reigned for around one year between 877 and 878. He was nicknamed Áed of the White Flowers, the wing-footed or the white-foot. Áed was the son of Kenneth MacAlpin (Cináed mac Ailpín), and succeeded his brother Constantine I (Causantín mac Cináeda). According to the national myth, his father was the first King of Scotland, and so Áed is Scotland’s fourth king according to most modern regal lists.

The location and manner of Áed's death is uncertain, but according to the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba, he was "slain in the civitas of Nrurim".

Little is known about Áed’s short reign, with the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba simply saying “The shortness of his reign has bequeathed nothing memorable to history. He was slain in the civitas of Nrurim.” The whereabouts of Nrurim is unknown, however Andrew of Wyntoun's Orygynale Cronykil of Scotland claims he was killed by one of his successors, Giric, in Strathallan, Perthshire. However, the 19th Century antiquarian George Chalmers believed that that the early-historic mound of the Cunninghillock by Inverurie, Aberdeenshire is the burial place of Áed. This is based on reading Nrurim as Inruriu. Other sources have Áed buried on Iona.

Áed was married, although his wife's name is unknown. They had two sons, Constantine, who would later be King of Scotland between 900 and 943 and Donald, who would become king of Strathclyde.

Áed was succeeded by two rulers, his nephew Eochaid and the mysterious Giric, who may have been his murderer. The relationship between these two kings is uncertain and probably complex and will be discussed in a later blogs.

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