Duncan I
| Duncan I | |
|---|---|
Anachronistic depiction of Duncan I by Jacob de Wet, 17th Century
|
|
| King of Alba | |
| Reign | 1034–1040 |
| Predecessor | Malcolm II |
| Successor | Macbeth |
| Born | c. 1001 |
| Died | 14 August 1040 Pitgaveny, near Elgin |
| Burial | Iona ? |
| Spouse | Suthen |
| Issue |
Malcolm III, King of Alba Donald III, King of Alba Máel Muire, Earl of Atholl |
| House | Dunkeld |
| Father | Crinan of Dunkeld |
| Mother | Bethoc |
Donnchad mac Crinain (Modern Gaelic: Donnchadh mac Crìonain; anglicised as Duncan I, and nicknamed An t-Ilgarach, "the Diseased" or "the Sick"; ca. 1001 – 14 August 1040) was king of Scotland (Alba) from 1034 to 1040. He is the historical basis of the "King Duncan" in Shakespeare's play Macbeth.
He was son of Crínán, hereditary lay abbot of Dunkeld, and Bethóc, daughter of king Máel Coluim mac Cináeda (Malcolm II).
Unlike the "King Duncan" of Shakespeare's Macbeth, the historical Duncan appears to have been a young man. He followed his grandfather Malcolm as king after the latter's death on 25 November 1034, without apparent opposition. He may have been Malcolm's acknowledged successor or Tànaiste as the succession appears to have been uneventful. Earlier histories, following John of Fordun, supposed that Duncan had been king of Strathclyde in his grandfather's lifetime, between 1018 and 1034, ruling the former Kingdom of Strathclyde as an appanage. Modern historians discount this idea.
An earlier source, a variant of the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba (CK-I), gives Duncan's wife the Gaelic name Suthen. Whatever his wife's name may have been, Duncan had at least two sons. The eldest, Malcolm III (Máel Coluim mac Donnchada) was king from 1058 to 1093, the second Donald III (Domnall Bán, or "Donalbane") was king afterwards. Máel Muire, Earl of Atholl is a possible third son of Duncan, although this is uncertain.
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