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List of Kings of the Isles
The Kingdom of Limerick (Hlymrekr; Luimneach) was a Viking city-state in southwest Ireland in the early middle ages.

Origins
Norse contact with the British Isles began in Scotland, predating the first written records in the 8th century, although the nature and frequency of these contacts is unknown. Excavations on the island of Unst in Shetland indicate that Scandinavian settlers had reached there perhaps as early as the mid-7th century and from 793 onwards repeated raids by Vikings on the British Isles are recorded. "All the islands of Britain" were devastated in 794 with Iona being sacked in 802 and 806. The earliest recorded Viking raids in Ireland occurred in 795, when the Annals of Ulster record they attacked Rathlin Island. In subsequent years Viking raids were carried out on sites all around Ireland, increasing in intensity over time. In 840–841 for the first time a group of Vikings remained in Ireland throughout the winter. This change in behaviour necessitated the construction of longphorts, fortified outposts which were used to shelter ships and men. Some of these became permanent; one such longphort was established at Duiblinn on the River Liffey, with Vikings staying there for the first time during the winter of 841–842.