HIS excellent hook deserves a wide readership. Dr O Muraile has rescued the reputation of the 17th-century Irish scholar Dubhaltach Mac Fhirbhisigh (Duald MacFirbis) from undeserved obscurity. He points out that Mac Fhirbhisigh's life is a jigsaw from which a large number of the pieces are missing, but manages nonetheless to present a coherent chronicle of events - and where information is lacking, he fills in with sensible speculation, which helps to maintain the dramatic flow.
Dr O Muraile devotes his first three chapters to a discussion of Dubhaltach's forebears, the illustrious Clann Fhirbhisigh, who were historians to the O'Dowds (O Dubhda), lords of Tireragh, Co Sligo. From at least as early as the 13th century, members of this family contributed greatly to the preservation of early Irish literature. Thus Giolla Iosa Mor Mac Fhirbhisigh (died c. 1420) was responsible for the compilation of the Book of Lecan as well as part of the composite manuscript known as the Yellow Book of Lecan. Dubhaltach's grandfather (also called Dubhaltach) was one of the scribes of O'Davoren's legal glossary.
Our Dubhaltach was probably born in Lackan (Lecan) Castle in Co Sligo around the beginning of the 17th century. Little is known about his early years, but there is a possibility that he received training in Irish (Brehon) law from the MacEgans (Mac Aodhagain) of Ormond, Co Tipperary. Certainly his work displays an expertise in Irish law, and one of his most important gifts to posterity was his transcript of an eighth-century law-text entitled Bretha Nemed Deidenach, which deals mainly with the law relating to poets and poetry. Dubhaltach's historical work is also of great importance: he was responsible for compiling the Chronicum Scotorum and the material now known as the Fragmentary Annals of Ireland.
DR O Muraile devotes a most interesting chapter to Dubhaltach's time in the city of Galway during a particularly turbulent period of its history. He deduces that Dubhaltach was in residence by March 1645 at the latest, and shows that he had links with the College of Saint Nicholas. During the years 1649 and 1650 he is known to have been working on his Book of Genealogies, which provides genealogical records of the old Anglo-Norman families (SeanGhaill) as well as the main Gaelic families.
In 1652 Galway surrendered to the Parliamentary forces under Coote, and it seems that Duhhaltach left the city soon after - or possibly even before this event. In 1665-6 he was working in Dublin for the Anglo-Irish historian Sir John Ware. At this period he is known to have been preparing an abridged version of his Book of Genealogies, and he also made a list (in English) of early and medieval Irish bishops for Ware. After Ware's death in December 1666, he returned to his house at Castletown in Tireragh. He was killed in January 1671 by a Thomas Crofton under mysterious circumstances which are ably and sensitively investigated by the author.
Dr O Muraile's style is fluent and engaging, though some passages could have been improved by pruning. I also found his description, on a few occasions, of Mac Fhirbhisigh as "the Tireraghman" a bit jarring. But these are quibbles - buy the book!