Cairpre Gabra
Between the 5th and 12th centuries, an Irish sept claiming descent from Coirpre mac Néill ruled a barony of north Tethbae, called Cairpre Gabra. Their territory corresponds to the barony of Granard in modern county Longford in Ireland. Etymology. Cairpre Gabra is a corruption of and is best translated as "the descendants of Coirpre". Coirpre mac Néill (Modern ) was eldest son of the Niall of the Nine Hostages the supposed ancestor of the southern Uí Néill. Tradition claims Coirpre married a Fir Bolg princess named Mulreany and ruled all of North Longford from the Moat of Granard. Coirpre  also owned tracts near Lough Erne and the Carbury barony in Sligo. The first Uí Néill successes in Leinster were probably due to this Coirpre, supposedly a high king of Ireland. Ó Duígeannáin stated Cairbre Gabhra is identical to the ancient place "" disagreeing with O'Donovan's identification as "Carbury (County Kildare barony)". Tuath Glasraige & Brecraighi. The territory was presumably a frontier colony of the Kingdom of Meath before the seventh century. An ancient folklore called "" named "the ” as ruling the territory around Granard and Lough Sheelin ("") but nothing further is known about the tribe. Bracan mac Máine Mór probably resided  at Rathbracken townland to the north of Granard. His descendants, the "", were defeated by the Cenél Coirpri in AD 751. Cairpre Gabra. Between the fifth and seventh centuries, a branch of the Uí Néill called the Cairpre Gabhra ( - descendants of Coirpre mac Néill) settled around Granard and Lough Sheelin in North Tethbae (approximately county Longford). Three distinct sub-septs of the Cenel Coirpri listed in the genealogies were powerful circa 700AD, namely the "Cairpri Laigin", the "Cairpri Gabra", and "Cairpri Dromma Cliab" though current thinking now believes "Cairpri Laigin" was a later construct. Furthermore, various related septs under the designations  of Cenel Cairpre, Cairpre Mor, and Cairpre Gabra, figure in the annals of Ulster from the seventh, eighth, and ninth century. Cairpre Gabra is first mentioned in the Irish Annals for the year AD731. It is generally believed a larger Cairpre grouping stretched from Sligo to Longford at an early date taking in Leitrim and parts of Fermanagh ("Tuatha Ratha" or Magheraboy) and it was divided in two by the expansion of the Kingdom of Breifne under the Uí Briúin. Cairpre Gabra lay between the tuaths of Luigne-Gailenga to the east, and Conmaicne Maigh Rein to the north-west . Centred on Granard, Cairpre Gabra lay along the northern border of the ancient Kingdom of Meath, and comprised the barony of Granard, and at least part of the barony of Longford. Cairbre may have extended as far east as Cúl (Coole) in county Westmeath). The north-western frontier ran from Cluain Cusa (Clooncoose) through Crott (between Slieve Carbry and Lake Naback) over as far as Lough Gowna, but excluded the most northern portion of the modern barony of Granard. The Cairpre territory was probably of limited extent by the 8th century. The principal churches were at Granard and Clonbroney, supposedly  given to Saint Patrick when he visited "Coirpre" and instructed Guasacht mac Milchu to found a church at Granard, and two sisters, Emers, to found a church at Cluain Brónaigh (ClonBroney). Cairbre Gabra was therefore among the first Christianity centres in Ireland. Cairpre Gabra was not a strong tuath and in the 11th century the O'Cairbres were conquered by the Ó Cuinns, Ó Fearghails, and other Conmhaícne tribes. Caipre Gabra was absorbed into the larger Annaly kingdom, so named after "" the great-grandfather of Fearghail O'Farrell. Annaly became Longphoirt, now Longford, after O'Farrell's fortress of this name. It is  believed a section of the dynasty were introduced as lords of Carbury in Kildare in a 12th-century intrusion following this pressure on their original territory in north-east Longford. Ó Ciardha (O'Keary or O'Carey) were established as lords of Carbury from this group about the time of the Norman invasion of Ireland. Events. Dobbs (1938, 1941) summarizes many events connected to the ancient Granard (barony) and Cairbre Gabra as follows-