Isle of Bute in the context of Cenél Comgaill

The Firth of Clyde is the estuary of the River Clyde, on the west coast of Scotland. The Firth has some of the deepest coastal waters of the British Isles and is sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre Peninsula. The Firth lies between West Dunbartonshire in the north, Argyll and Bute in the west, and Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire in the east. Kilbrannan Sound is a large arm of the Firth, separating the Kintyre Peninsula from the Isle of Arran. The Kyles of Bute separates the Isle of Bute from the Cowal Peninsula. The Sound of Bute separates the islands of Bute and Arran.

The Highland Boundary Fault crosses the Firth. The Firth also played a vital military role during World War II.

The Islands of the Firth of Clyde are the fifth largest of the major Scottish island groups after the Inner and Outer Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland. They are situated in the Firth of Clyde between Argyll and Bute in the west and Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire in the east. There are about forty islands and skerries. Only four are inhabited, and only nine are larger than 40 hectares (99 acres). The largest and most populous are Arran and Bute. They are served by dedicated ferry routes, as are Great Cumbrae and Holy Island. Unlike the isles in the four larger Scottish archipelagos, none of the isles in this group are connected to one another or to the mainland by bridges.

The geology and geomorphology of the area is complex, and the islands and the surrounding sea lochs each have distinctive features. The influence of the Atlantic Ocean and the North Atlantic Drift create a mild, damp oceanic climate. There is a diversity of wildlife, including three species of rare endemic trees.

Rothesay (/ˈrɒθsi/ ROTH-see; Scottish Gaelic: Baile Bhòid [ˈpalə ˈvɔːtʲ]) is the principal town on the Isle of Bute, in the council area of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies along the coast of the Firth of Clyde. It can be reached by a Caledonian MacBrayne ferry from Wemyss Bay, which also offers an onward rail link to Glasgow Central Station. At the centre of the town is the 13th-century ruin Rothesay Castle, unique in Scotland for its circular plan.

The Cenél nÓengusa were a kin group who ruled the island of Islay, and perhaps nearby Colonsay, off the western coast of Scotland in the early Middle Ages.

The Senchus fer n-Alban, a census and genealogy of the kingdom of Dál Riata, lists the Cenél nÓengusa as one of the three kin groups making up the kingdom in Argyll. The others were the Cenél nGabráin of Kintyre and the Cenél Loairn of Lorn. A fourth group, the Cenél Comgaill, of Cowal and the Isle of Bute, later split from the Cenél nGabráin. The Senchus portrays Dál Riata as it existed in the mid-seventh century.

Duke of Rothesay (/ˈrɒθsi/ ROTH-see; Scottish Gaelic: Diùc Baile Bhòid; Scots: Duik o Rothesay) is the main dynastic title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the Scottish and, later, British thrones. The dukedom was created in 1398 by King Robert III of Scotland for his eldest son.

Duke of Rothesay is the title mandated for use by the heir apparent when in Scotland, in preference to the titles Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall, which are used in the rest of the United Kingdom and overseas. The title is named after Rothesay on the Isle of Bute, but is not associated with any legal entity or landed property. The Duke of Rothesay also holds other Scottish titles, including Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles, and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland.

The Kyles of Bute (Scottish Gaelic: Na Caoil Bhòdach) form a narrow sea channel that separates the northern end of the Isle of Bute from the Cowal Peninsula in Argyll and Bute, on the Scottish mainland. The surrounding hillsides are roughly wooded, and overlooked by rocky tops and areas of moorland.

The Kyles are split into the East and West Kyles. The East Kyle (Scottish Gaelic: An Caol an Ear) runs from Rothesay Bay north west up to the entrance to Loch Riddon. Here at the northern end of the East Kyle are the Burnt Islands and the island of Eilean Dubh. The West Kyle (Scottish Gaelic: An Caol an Iar/An Caol Ceathrach) runs from here southwest, past the village of Tighnabruaich out to the Sound of Bute. The area is a designated National Scenic Area.

The Sound of Bute is a broad sound, separating the islands of Arran and Bute, on the west coast of Scotland. The sound leads up from the lower Firth of Clyde and passes the island of Inchmarnock. Then splits into the Kyles of Bute, Loch Fyne and round the north end of island of Arran into the Kilbrannan Sound.