Somerled

Who was Somerled?

Somerled was a mid-twelfth-century warlord who, through marital alliance and military conquest, rose in prominence and seized control of the Kingdom of the Isles. Little is certain of Somerled's origins, although he appears to have belonged to a Norse-Gaelic family of some substance. His father, GilleBride, appears to have conducted a marriage alliance with Malcolm, a son of Alexander I, King of Scotland, and claimant to the Scottish throne. Following a period of dependence upon David I, King of Scotland, Somerled first appears on record in 1153, when he supported kinsmen, identified as the sons of Malcolm, in their insurgence against the newly enthroned Malcolm IV, King of Scotland. Following this unsuccessful uprising, Somerled appears to have turned his sights upon the kingship of the Isles, then ruled by his brother-in-law, Godred Olafsson, King of the Isles. Taking advantage of the latter's faltering authority, Somerled participated in a violent coup d'état, and seized half of the kingdom in 1156. Two years later, he defeated and drove Godred from power, and Somerled ruled the entire kingdom until his death.