Dál Riata – Gospel of John In the early Historic Period Iona lay within the
Gaelic kingdom of
Dál Riata, in the region controlled by the
Cenél Loairn (i.e.
Lorn, as it was then). The island was the site of a highly important
monastery (see
Iona Abbey) during the
Early Middle Ages. The monastery was founded in 563 by the monk
Columba, also known as Colm Cille, who sailed here from Ireland to live the monastic life. Much later legends (a thousand years later, and without any good evidence) said that he had been exiled from his native
Ireland as a result of his involvement in the
Battle of Cul Dreimhne. Columba and twelve companions went into exile on Iona and founded a monastery there. The monastery was hugely successful and may have played a role in the conversion to
Christianity of the
Picts and Gaels of present-day
Scotland in the late 6th century, and was certainly central to the conversion of the
Anglo-Saxon kingdom of
Northumbria in 635. Many satellite institutions were founded, and Iona became the centre of one of the most important
monastic systems in Great Britain and Ireland. Iona became a renowned centre of learning, and its
scriptorium produced highly important documents, probably including the original texts of the Iona Chronicle, thought to be the source for the early
Irish annals. The
Book of Kells may have been produced or begun on Iona towards the end of the 8th century. Around this time the island's exemplary
high crosses were sculpted; these may be the first such crosses to contain the ring around the intersection that became characteristic of the "
Celtic cross".
Kingdom of the Isles As the Norse domination of the west coast of Scotland advanced, Iona became part of the
Kingdom of the Isles. The Norse
Rex plurimarum insularum Amlaíb Cuarán died in 980 or 981 whilst in "religious retirement" on Iona. Nonetheless, the island was sacked twice by his successors, on Christmas night 986 and again in 987. Although Iona was never again important to Ireland, it rose to prominence once more in Scotland following the establishment of the
Kingdom of Scotland in the later 9th century; the ruling dynasty of Scotland traced its origin to Iona, and the island thus became an important spiritual centre for the new kingdom, with many of its early kings buried there. At the end of the century, King
John Balliol was challenged for the throne by
Robert the Bruce. By this point, Somerled's descendants had split into three groups, the
MacRory,
MacDougalls, and
MacDonalds. The MacDougalls backed Balliol, so when he was defeated by Bruce, the latter exiled the MacDougalls and transferred their island territories to the MacDonalds; by marrying the
heir of the MacRorys,
the heir of the MacDonalds re-unified most of Somerled's realm, creating the
Lordship of the Isles, under nominal Scottish authority. Iona, which had been a MacDougall territory (together with the rest of Lorn), was given to the
Campbells, where it remained for half a century. In 1354, though in exile and without control of his ancestral lands,
John, the MacDougall heir, quitclaimed any rights he had over Mull and Iona to the Lord of the Isles (though this had no meaningful effect at the time). When Robert's son,
David II, became king, he spent some time in English captivity; following his release, in 1357, he restored MacDougall authority over Lorn. The 1354 quitclaim, which seems to have been an attempt to ensure peace in just such an eventuality, took automatic effect, splitting Mull and Iona from Lorn, and making it subject to the Lordship of the Isles. Iona remained part of the Lordship of the Isles for the next century and a half. Following the 1491
Raid on Ross, the Lordship of the Isles was dismantled, and Scotland gained full control of Iona for the second time. The monastery and nunnery continued to be active until the
Reformation, when buildings were demolished and all but three of the 360 carved crosses destroyed. The Augustine nunnery now only survives as a number of 13th century ruins, including a church and cloister. By the 1760s little more of the nunnery remained standing than at present, though it is the most complete remnant of a medieval nunnery in Scotland.
Post-Union After a visit in 1773, the English writer
Samuel Johnson remarked: :The island, which was once the metropolis of learning and piety, now has no school for education, nor temple for worship. He estimated the population of the village at 70 families or perhaps 350 inhabitants. In the 19th century, green-streaked marble was commercially mined in the south-east of Iona; the quarry and machinery survive, see "Marble Quarry remains" below. == Iona Abbey ==