in 1177 and the subsequent foundation of the Earldom of Ulster. The Mac Dúinnshléibe dynasty of Ulaid (English: Donleavy / Dunleavy) were given the title of rex Hibernicorum Ulidiae, meaning "king of the Irish of Ulaid", until the extinction of their dynasty by the end of the 13th century.

After the earldom's collapse in 1333, the title was resurrected and usurped after 1364 by the Ulaid's chief Gaelic rivals the Northern Uí Néill,