A Brief History Of The Isle Of Man
The Isle of Man was inhabited since ancient times. Human presence on the island is known to date back to at least 6500 BC, since the Mesolithic period more specifically (some of the earliest inhabitants being the ancient Celts). The Gaels are known to have settled the island during the 5th century and the Manx language, a Celtic language (part of the Goidelic group of Celtic languages), gradually developed. The cultural influences that gave birth to the Manx language stemmed mostly from Ireland. To date, the Manx language is in a process of so-called ‘resurrection’, after it went extinct during the late part of the 20th century. The Manx language’s closest relatives among the Celtic branch of languages are Irish (Gaeilge) and Gaellic Scottish (Gàidhlig).
The flag of the Isle of Man (enclosing a triskelion or triskele in the form of three armoured starred legs), a self-governing crown dependency of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Image source: www.pixabay.com
In the beginning of the 7th century, the Isle of Man was conquered by Edwin of Northumbria (initially the high king or Bretwalda of the early medieval Anglian kingdoms of Bernicia and Deira which united and subsequently formed the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria). Starting in the late part of the 8th century, the Norsemen (more specifically Norwegian Vikings) gradually began to settle the island and, along the passage of time, a combined or hybrid Celtic-Norse or Norse-Gaelic culture gradually emerged (represented by the Norse-Gaels; this culture did not only develop in the Isle of Man but also in Ireland and Scotland). The Isle of Man became a possession of the Kingdom of Norway during the Early Middle Ages (namely in the time of the Viking Age) along with the Hebrides, the islands of the Firth of Clyde, the Shetlands, and the Orkneys. The Isle of Man became thus part of a locally formed Norse-Gaelic kingdom, commonly referred to as the Kingdom of the Isles (or Kingdom of Mann and the Isles) which comprised the Hebrides as well (more specifically the Inner and Outer Hebrides) and the islands of the Firth of Clyde situated to the north near Scotland.
The Isle of Man remained a constituent territory within the Kingdom of Norway until the 13th century, when the then King of Norway, Magnus VI, ceded the island to Scotland through the Treaty of Perth. During the next century, the Isle of Man became either part of England or of Scotland. It wasn’t until 1366 that the English rule over the disputed Isle of Man with the Scotsmen would be secured after the Englishmen’s victory in the Battle of Neville’s Cross (1346).
At the end of the 19th century, the Isle of Man was granted home rule and to date it is a crown dependency of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK). A major challenge which it must deal with in the future is the resurrection of the Manx language. As a matter of fact, several ways of resurrecting it have already been put to practice, but it still takes time in order to fully ‘revive’ it.
Documentation sources and external links:
- Edwin, King of Northumbria on www.britishmuseum.org
- St. Edwin, King and Martyr on www.celticsaints.org
- Isle of Man on www.britannica.com (the online version of Encyclopædia Britannica)
- Manx language on www.britannica.com (the online version of Encyclopædia Britannica)