Editing Armagh (section)

===Medieval era===
By the 7th century, Armagh had become the site of the most important church, monastery and [[monastic school]] in the north of Ireland.<ref name="duffy">Duffy, Seán. ''Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia''. Routledge, 2005. pp.48-50</ref> The ''[[Book of Armagh]]'' was produced in the monastery in the early 9th century and contains some of the oldest surviving specimens of [[Old Irish]].

Armagh was at the heart of the kingdom of the Airthir, a part of the [[Airgíalla]] federation. The church at Armagh looked to both the Airthir and neighbouring [[Uí Néill]] for patronage.<ref name="duffy"/> The Uí Néill [[High King of Ireland|High King]], [[Niall Caille]] (Niall of the Callan), was buried at Armagh in 846 after drowning in the River Callan. His son, High King [[Áed Findliath]], had a house at Armagh.<ref name="duffy"/>

The first [[Viking]] raids on Armagh were recorded in 832, with three in one month,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Roesdahl |first1=Else |title=The Vikings |date=2016 |publisher=Penguin Books |isbn=978-0-141-98476-6 |page=233 |edition=Third}}</ref> and it suffered at least ten Viking raids over the following century. A hoard seemingly lost by Vikings in the River Blackwater shows the high quality of metalwork being made in Armagh at this time.<ref name="duffy"/>

[[Brian Boru]], [[High King of Ireland]], visited Armagh in 1004, acknowledging it as the head church of Ireland and bestowing it a large sum of gold. Brian was buried at Armagh cathedral after his death at the [[Battle of Clontarf]] in 1014.<ref>Llywelyn, Morgan. ''1014: Brian Boru & the Battle for Ireland''. Courier Dover, 2020. pp.97, 240</ref> Armagh's claim to being the head church of Ireland was formally acknowledged at the [[Synod of Ráth Breasail]] in 1111.<ref name="duffy"/> The 1171 Council of Armagh freed all Englishmen and women who were [[Slavery in Ireland|enslaved in Ireland]].<ref name="sourcebooks.fordham.edu">{{Cite web |title=Internet History Sourcebooks Project |url=https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/1171latrsale.asp |website=sourcebooks.fordham.edu}}</ref>

Following the [[Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland]], Armagh was attacked by Anglo-Normans led by Philip de Worcester in 1185 and by [[John de Courcy]] in 1189.<ref>{{Cite book|author1=DeBreffny, Brian |author2=Mott, George | year=1976 |title=The Churches and Abbeys of Ireland | publisher=[[Thames & Hudson]] | location=London | pages=60–61}}</ref> It was also raided by Ruaidrí mac Duinn Sléibe of [[Ulaid]] in 1196 and 1199.<ref>Smith, Brendan. ''Colonisation and Conquest in Medieval Ireland: The English in Louth, 1170-1330''. Cambridge University Press, 1999. p.62</ref>

Archbishop [[Máel Patraic Ua Scannail]] rebuilt Armagh cathedral in 1268 and founded a [[Franciscans|Franciscan]] friary, whose remains can still be seen. There was also a small [[Culdee]] community in Armagh until the 16th century.<ref name="duffy"/>