Fland mac Máele Tuile
King of Ailech
Fland mac Máele Tuile (died 700), also Flann Finn or Flann Albus was a King of Ailech and head of the Cenél nEógain branch of the northern Uí Néill. He was the grandson of Crundmáel mac Suibni (died circa 660), a previous King of Ailech and greatgrandson of the high king of Ireland Suibne Menn (died 628).
He was a member of the Cenél Feradaig branch of this dynasty which was in conflict with the Cenél maic Ercae branch and had dominated the kingship for much of the 7th century. In 681, along with his allies the Cianachta Glenn Geimin (in modern County Londonderry), he defeated the incumbent king of Ailech, Máel Dúin mac Máele Fithrich of the Cenél maic Ercae, who was slain at the Battle of Bla Sléibe (in modern County Londonderry).
The Laud Synchronisms give a 12-year reign to Fland followed by a 6-year reign assigned to a brother named Urthuile. Together their reigns cover the years 681-700 but the exact chronology is unknown. Fland is listed as one of the guarantors to the Cáin Adomnáin (Law of the Innocents) at the Synod of Birr in 697; as his brother Urthuile but Fland has the title of king. In 700 the annals record the expulsion of Urthuile from the kingship and he went to Britain. The annals then record the death of Fland in the same year. According to the Chronicum Scotorum, he was killed.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Fland mac Máele Tuile” is king of Ailech. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Fland, Máele and Tuile, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “king of Ailech” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 27, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5457352. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
Public reputation and documentary evidence do not always develop together; absence from a summary is not evidence of historical absence. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.
- Establishing names and roles
- Building a first chronology
- Locating cited institutions
Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Fland mac Máele Tuile”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Fland mac Máele Tuile primary sources, Fland mac Máele Tuile archive and Fland research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Fland mac Máele Tuile”?
- Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
- Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Fland mac Máele Tuile” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.