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[[Image:Columba at Bridei's fort.jpg|right|thumb|Iona's first abbot, [[Columba of Iona|Saint Columba]], before the fortress of the Pictish king.]]
The '''Abbot of Iona''' was the head of [[Iona|Iona Abbey]] during the [[w:Middle Ages|Middle Ages]] and the leader of the monastic community of [[Iona]], as well as the overlord of scores of monasteries in both Scotland and Ireland, including Durrow, [[Book of Kells|Kells]] and, for a time, [[Lindisfarne]]. It was one of the most prestigious clerical positions in [[w:Dark Ages (historiography)|Medieval]] Europe, and was visited by kings and bishops of the Picts, Franks and Anglo-Saxons. The Ionan abbots [[abbot]]s also had the status of ''' '[[w:coarb|Comarba]] of Colum Cille' ''' (i.e. the successors of Saint [[Columba of Iona|Columba]]).
Iona's position as the head of the Columban network (''familia'') of churches declined with the presence of abbots based at Derry, Raphoe, Kells and Dunkeld. In Scotland, the [[w:Bishop of Dunkeld|abbots of Dunkeld]] ruled much of central Scotland in the 11th century, and functioned as one of the most important politicians of northern Britain.<ref group="note">One of the abbots, [[w:Crínán of Dunkeld|Crínán]] married [[w:Bethóc|Bethóc ingen Maíl Coluim]], the daughter of King [[w:Malcolm II of Scotland|Máel Coluim II]], and became the progenitor of the so-called [[w:House of Dunkeld|House of Dunkeld]], who ruled Scotland until the later thirteenth century. Dunkeld became a bishopric, and the monks based at [[w:Inchcolm Abbey|Inchcolm Abbey]] became Augustinians.</ref>
'''Early abbots of Iona'''
{| border="1"
!Abbot||UntilPeriod||Notes
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|'''[[Columba of Iona|Colum Cille mac Fedelmtheo]]'''||9 June 547 - 597||(''Columba of Iona'')
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|'''[[w:Baithéne mac Brénaind|Baithéne mac Brénaind]]'''||9 June 598597 - 600||Colum Cille's devoted servant, cousin and successor as abbot of the community.
|-
|'''[[w:Lasrén mac Feradaig|Lasrén mac Feradaig]]'''||16 September 600 - 605||During Colmba's time Lasrén was in charge of the satellite community at Durrow. He was the son of a cousin of Columba.
|-
|'''[[w:Fergno Britt mac Faílbi|Fergno Britt mac Faílbi]]'''||2 March 605 - 623||Known primarily as ''Virgno.''The first abbot not to be a blood-relation of Colum Cille. He is said to have had some British blood.
|-
|'''[[w:Ségéne mac Fiachnaí|Ségéne mac Fiachnaí]]'''||12 August 623 - 652||He was the nephew of Lasrén mac Feradaig.
|-
|'''[[w:Suibne moccu Fir Thrí|Suibne moccu Fir Thrí]]'''||652 - 657||Died 11 January 657||.
|-
|'''[[w:Cumméne Find|Cumméne Find]]'''||24 February 657 - 669||A nephew of abbot Ségéne. Visited Ireland in 661.
|-
|'''[[w:Fáilbe mac Pípáin|Fáilbe mac Pípáin]]'''||22 March 669 - 679||Third cousin of Cumméne. He spent from 673 to 676 in Ireland.
|-
|'''[[w:Adomnán|Adomnán mac Rónáin]]'''|23 September |679 - 704||Biographer of St Columba. Although converted to the Roman ways himself he was unable to persuade his community. In 697, it is generally believed that Adomnán promulgated the ''[[w:Cáin Adomnáin|Cáin Adomnáin]].''
|-
|'''[[w:Conamail mac Faílbi|Conamail mac Faílbi]]'''||Deposed(?) 707704 - 710||Died 11 September 710. Died in 710, but we learn that Dunchad had already become abbot in 707 and continued until his death in 717. There is known to have been a '''schism on Iona in 704''' and that there were, consequently, and to 772, times when there were two rival Abbots. The schism was the result of the attempt to 'convert' Iona to the Roman ways.
|-
|'''[[Dúnchad mac Cinn Fáelad]]'''||Deposed(?) June 713<br>(restored 713 x 716)<br>707 - 717||Died 25 May 717||.
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|'''Dorbbéne mac Altaíni'''||28 October 713 - 713||Also called Dorbbéne Foto. Died Saturday 28 October 713 having had the primacy for only five months.
|-
|'''Fáelchú mac Dorbbéni'''||Deposed/resigned 722716 - 724||Died He received the chair of St Columba at the age of seventy-three on Saturday 29 August and died as abbot in 724.
|-
|'''Fedelmid'''||Deposed(722 - ?) before 722||Before Fáelchú died in 724, the annals record that Fedlimid became abbot, but his death is not recorded. It would seem that he was installed alongside Dunchad - perhaps because of the latter's great age and infirmity, but see Conamail above. Died 759.
|-
|'''Cilléne Fota'''||Died 724 - 726||Cilléne the Tall.
|-
|'''Cilléne Droichtech'''||Died 726 - 752||Cilléne the Bridgemaker.
|-
|'''Sléibíne mac Congaile||Resigned before 766752 - 767||Was in Ireland in 754. Died 767.
|-
|'''Suibne'''||Resigned 771767 - 772||Died 801
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|'''Bresal mac Ségéni'''|Died |772 - 801||Is known to have visited Ireland in 778. Died 801.
|-
|'''Connachtach'''||Died 801 - 802||"Scriba selectisimus".
|-
|'''Cellach mac Congaile'''||resigned 802 - 814||Died 815. Built Kells church in Ireland.
|-
|'''[[w:Diarmait of Iona|Diarmait daltae Daigri]]'''||Resigned 831814 - 832||(''Diarmait of Iona''); Died Carried St Columba's relics to Ireland in or after 831830; ([[w:Blathmac|Blathmac mac Flainn]] was martyred on Iona in 825).
|-
|'''[[w:Indract of Glastonbury|Indrechtach ua Fínnachta]]'''||Resigned before 832 - 854||(''Indract of Glastonbury''); Died Slain by Saxons on his way to Rome 12 March 854.
|-
|'''Cellach mac Ailello'''||Died 865||Cellach had been [[w:Abbots and abbesses of Kildare|Abbot of Kildare]] since 852
|'''Feradach mac Cormaic'''||Died 880||
|-
|'''Flann mac Maíle Dúin'''||Died 20 April 891||
|-
|}
==List of comarbai Coluim Cille and abbots of Iona, 891–1099==
|-
|}
==See also==
'''Wikipedia'''
* [[w:Abbot of Iona|Abbot of Iona]]
==External Links==
* [http://www.cushnieent.force9.co.uk/CelticEra/celtic_abbsiona.htm Abbots of Iona]. Cushnie Enterprises.
[[Category: Monastics]]
