Magennis
| Guinness Mac Aonghusa |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Country | Kingdom of Ulster |
| Parent house | Ulaid (Dál nAraidi) |
| Titles |
|
| Founder | Aonghus mac Aidiotha |
| Final ruler | Art Mac Aonghusa |
| Cadet branches | MacCartan |
Magennis (Irish: Mac Aonghusa) also spelled Maguiness, Maginnis, McGuinness or Guinness, is an Irish surname, meaning the "son of Angus", which in eastern Ulster was commonly pronounced in Irish as Mag Aonghusa. A prominent branch of the Uíbh Eachach Cobha, the Magennises would become chiefs of the territory of Iveagh, which by the 16th century comprised over half of modern County Down, Northern Ireland. By the end of the 17th century, their territory had been divided up between them and British prospectors.
The four main branches of the Magennis clan were: Castlewellan, Corgary, Kilwarlin, and Rathfriland, between whom there was rivalry. The Mac Artáin (MacCartan) sept of Kinelarty, descend from the Magennis clan, through the great-grandson of Mongán Mac Aonghusa.
The Magennis clan were a sept of the Ui hAitidhe, and descended from Sárán, a descendant of Eachach Cobha, of which the territory of Uíbh Eachach Cobha (Iveagh) derived its name. They ruled the sub-territory of Clann Aodha (Clan Hugh), however by the 12th-century had replaced the Ui hAitidhe as the chiefs of Iveagh, with Rathfriland as their base.
One of the earliest mentions of the Magennis as chiefs of Iveagh, is in the charter granted to the abbey of Newry in 1153, which was witnessed by Aedh Mor Magennis, who was cited as being chief of Clann Aodha and of Iveagh. The Magennises are also mentioned in letters by King Edward II, where they are titled Dux Hibernicorum de Ouehagh, meaning "chief of the Irish of Iveagh".
The Magennises allied themselves to the Earldom of Ulster, which was created after the Norman invasion of Ulster, until the death of William Donn de Burgh, 3rd Earl of Ulster in 1333. After the subsequent collapse of the earldom, the Magennises by the 15th century had expanded Iveagh all the way east to Dundrum Castle, where County Down meets the Irish Sea.
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Wikipedia