Although their roots are in the Western Isles of Scotland the Sweeneys
are one of the major families of Donegal. The Scottish annals record a 'Sweyne of Argyll,
son of Kenneth King of the Gall Gaedhill' as early as 1034. Later, according to the
historian Archibald Brown, the family of 'Swene possessed the upper half of Kintyre and
all Knapdale'. The Mac Suibhne surname in Scotland is commonly anglicised as McQueen.
The Mac Suibhne came to Donegal as fighting men [gall óglaigh or
gallowglasses, literally 'foriegn wariors'], at first in Fanad, but did not settle
permanently in Donegal until early in the fourteenth century. The Mac Suibhnes first came
to Donegal in the mid thirteenth century, when Eoin, great grandson of Suibhne the
ancestor of the family, took over the Fanad peninsula by expelling its previous rulers,
the Uí Breisléin. Eoin’s daughter Caitríona married Domhnall Óg Ó Domhnaill,
Godfrey’s father, the king of Tír Chonaill. This union between Sweeneys and
O’Donnells was to the forerunner of the long-term union that was so important for
both. To cement their position in Tír Chonaill the Sweeneys later claimed to be descended
from the Cenel Eoghain, but whether this was grounded in fact is open to some doubt.
It was at the beginning of the following century, however, that the
Sweeneys formally assumed their role as gall óglaigh to the O’Donnells. What marks
the Sweeneys apart from other such families is their success in becoming rulers of
considerable territories, thus making them relatively independent. From their original
base in Fanad the Sweeneys took over the adjoining coastal area of na Trí Tuatha -
from modern day Creeslough to Gweedore, which became the territory of the second branch of
the family, Mac Suibhne na dTuath or Sweeney Doe.
The third branch, Mac Suibhne Boghaineach or Sweeney Banagh, had
gained possession of their territory in South-West Donegal at an earlier date in the
fourteenth century.
One of the features of O'Donnell power was the 'Lucht Tighe', the
families who occupied key positions in the power structure on a hereditary basis. For
example the O'Clerys [Uí Cléirigh] were the scribes of the O'Donnells, while the
Gallaghers [Uí Gallchobhair] commanded the O'Donnell cavalry. Most prominent amongst
these families, however, were the three branches of the Mac Suibhnes - Mac Suibhne Fanad
(Sweeney Fanad) , Mac Suibhne na dTuath (Sweeney Doe) and Mac Suibhne Boghaineach (Sweeney
Banagh). These three branches of the Sweeneys commanded the forces and provided the
backbone of the O’Donnell armies.
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