See also
| Husband: | Olaf I + GODREDSSON (1080-1153) | |
| Wife: | Ingeborg + HAKONSDATTER (1106- ) | |
| Children: | Ragnhild + OLAFSDATTER (1117- ) | |
| Name: | Olaf I + GODREDSSON | |
| Sex: | Male | |
| Father: | Godred + CROVAN (1050-1092) | |
| Mother: | Ragnhild + HAROLDSDOTTIR (1050- ) | |
| Birth | 1080 | Isle of Man |
| Occupation | King of the Isle of Man | |
| Title | King of the Isle of Man | |
| Death | 1153 (age 72-73) | Isle of Man |
| Name: | Ingeborg + HAKONSDATTER | |
| Sex: | Female | |
| Father: | Haakon + PAALSON (1070-1122) | |
| Mother: | Helga + MADDANNSDATTER (1080- ) | |
| Birth | 1106 | Orkney, Orkney Islands, Scotland |
| Name: | Ragnhild + OLAFSDATTER | |
| Sex: | Female | |
| Spouse: | Somerled + (1113-1164) | |
| Birth | 1117 | Isle of Man |
Olaf Godredsson (Gaelic: Amlaíb mac Gofraid; Old Norse: Óláfr Guðrøðarson), sometimes known in secondary sources as Olaf I, was a 12th century ruler of the Isle of Man and the Hebrides. Some secondary sources style Olaf "King of Mann", or "King of Mann and the Isles". However these terms are anachronisms, and Olaf styled himself "King of the Isles
Olaf was a younger son of Godred Crovan, founder of the Crovan dynasty which ruled the Isle of Man and parts of the Hebrides until the mid 13th century. The ancestry of Godred is uncertain. The Chronicle of Mann describes him in Latin as filius Haraldi nigri de ysland,[1] and it is possible that "ysland" may refer to Iceland.[note 1] Within the Annals of Tigernach, he is given the Gaelic patronymic mac mic Arailt, which may mean that he was a son, or nephew, of Ivar Haraldsson, King of Dublin (d. 1054).[3] Ivar was a grandson of the celebrated Olaf Cuaran, King of Dublin, King of Northumbria (d. 981),[4] a second generation Uí Ímair dynast.[5] Godred died in 1095, after ruling the Kingdom of the Isles for over 15 years. A period of confusion followed Godred's death before Olaf took control of the kingdom.[6]
Part of Olaf's youth was spent at the court of Henry I, King of England.[7]
[edit] ReignAccording to the Chronicle of Mann, Olaf reigned for 40 years.[8] The chronicle states that he was a peaceful monarch, and that that "all the kings of Ireland and Scotland as confederates in such a way that no one dared disturb the kingdom of the Isles during his lifetime".[7][8]
Little is known of the ecclesiastical history of the Kingdom of the Isles until Olaf's appointment of Wimund as Bishop of the Isles, in 1134.[9] One of the most important ecclesiastical events in the history of the kingdom was the foundation of Rushen Abbey, in 1134, with a grant of lands from Olaf to the Abbot of Furness.[10] Another key ecclesiastical event was the foundation of the Archbishopric of Nidaros, a metropolitan see centred in Norway. In time this archbishopric, founded in 1152/53, incorporated 11 bishoprics within and outwith Norway.[note 2] One of these bishoprics encompassed the domain of the Kingdom of the Isles,[12] and was created by a papal decree in 1154.[note 3] This bishopric mirrored the political reality of the Kingdom of the Isles, due to its similar geographical boundaries and its subjection to Norway; it also further to strengthened the link between the Kingdom of the Isles and Norway. The original grant of Olaf's gave the English Cistercian house of Furness the right to elect a Bishop of the Isles, and several of the early Abbots of Rushen held that position.[13]
During the whole of the Scandinavian period the isles remained nominally under the suzerainty of the kings of Norway, but the Norwegians only occasionally asserted it with any vigour.
[edit] FamilyOlaf is known to have married Ingebjorg, daughter of Hakon Paulsson, Earl of Orkney; and Affreca, daughter of Fergus, Lord of Galloway.[7] The Chronicle of Mann states that it was by Affreca that Olaf had his son and successor Godred. The chronicle also records that Olaf had several concubines, and by them had sons Ragnvald, Lagman, and Harald. Olaf is also stated to have had many daughters by his concubines;[8] one of whom married Somerled, Lord of Argyll.[7]