"Éamonn an Chnoic" ("Ned of the Hill") is a popular

Sean nos song Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; angliciz ...

traditional Irish music Irish traditional music (also known as Irish trad, Irish folk music, and other variants) is a genre of folk music that developed in Ireland. In ''A History of Irish Music'' (1905), W. H. Grattan Flood wrote that, in Gaelic Ireland, there w ...

. It is a slow, mournful

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

with a somber theme and no

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

. The song is attributed to Éamonn Ó Riain (Edmund O'Ryan) (d.c.1724), an early 18th century

County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...

folk hero A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in folk songs, folk tales and other folklore; a ...

, composer of

Irish bardic poetry Bardic poetry is the writings produced by a class of poets trained in the bardic schools of Ireland and the Gaelic parts of Scotland, as they existed down to about the middle of the 17th century or, in Scotland, the early 18th century. Most of t ...

, and

rapparee Rapparees or raparees (from the Irish ''ropairí'', plural of ''ropaire'', whose primary meaning is "thruster, stabber," and by extension a wielder of the half-pike or pike), were Irish guerrilla fighters who operated on the Jacobite side du ...

; an

outlawed An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so that anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them ...

member of the

Gaelic nobility of Ireland This article concerns the Gaelic nobility of Ireland from ancient to modern times. It only partly overlaps with Chiefs of the Name because it excludes Scotland and other discussion. It is one of three groups of Irish nobility, the others being ...

who still held to the

code of conduct A code of conduct is a set of rules outlining the norms, rules, and responsibilities or proper practices of an individual party or an organization. Companies' codes of conduct A company code of conduct is a set of rules which is commonly writt ...

of the traditional chiefs of the

Irish clan Irish clans are traditional kinship groups sharing a common surname and heritage and existing in a lineage-based society, originating prior to the 17th century. A clan (or ''fine'' in Irish) included the chief and his patrilineal relatives; howe ...

s. Folk song researcher Donal O'Sullivan has written that Captain Edmund O'Ryan's, "gay chivalry, daring exploits, and 'moving accidents by flood and field' would indeed make fine material for a historical novel."

Life

According to

James Clarence Mangan James Clarence Mangan, born James Mangan ( ga, Séamus Ó Mangáin; 1 May 1803, Dublin – 20 June 1849), was an Irish poet. He freely translated works from German, Turkish, Persian, Arabic, and Irish, with his translations of Goethe gaining sp ...

, O'Ryan was born in Shanbohy, in the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

of Templebeg ( ga, An Teampall Beag), in the half-barony of

Kilnamanagh Upper Kilnamanagh Upper ( Irish: ''Cill na Manach Uachtarach'') is a barony in County Tipperary, Ireland. This geographical unit of land is one of 12 baronies in County Tipperary. Its chief town is Borrisoleigh. The barony lies between Ormond Upper to ...

Tipperary Tipperary is the name of: Places *County Tipperary, a county in Ireland **North Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Nenagh **South Tipperary, a former administrative county based in Clonmel *Tipperary (town), County Tipperary's na ...

, "previous to the wars of 1690". Stephen Dunford, however, gives his birthplace as Atshanbohy, in the same civil parish. Donal O'Sullivan, on the other hand, gives his birthplace as the castle upon ''Cnoc Maothail'', a hill 828 feet high in Templebeg and, for this reason he was always known as ''Éamonn an Chnuic'', or Edmund of the Hill. For similar reasons, his sister was known as "Sally of the Hill", ( ga, Sadhbh an Chnuic). His father's family was descended from the

derbhfine The derbfine ( ; ga, dearbhfhine , from ''derb'' 'real' + ''fine'' 'group of persons of the same family or kindred', thus literally 'true kin'electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language s.vderbḟine/ref>) was a term for patrilineal groups and po ...

of the last

Chief of the Name The Chief of the Name, or in older English usage Captain of his Nation, is the recognised head of a family or clan (''fine'' in Irish and Scottish Gaelic). The term has sometimes been used as a title in Ireland and Scotland. In Ireland In Eliza ...

of Clan O'Ryan and

Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or ar ...

of Kilnalongurty; but his ancestors had lost their ancestral lands fighting for the

Hiberno-Norman From the 12th century onwards, a group of Normans invaded and settled in Gaelic Ireland. These settlers later became known as Norman Irish or Hiberno-Normans. They originated mainly among Cambro-Norman families in Wales and Anglo-Normans from ...

Fitzgerald dynasty The FitzGerald/FitzMaurice Dynasty is a noble and aristocratic dynasty of Cambro-Norman, Anglo-Norman and later Hiberno-Norman origin. They have been peers of Ireland since at least the 13th century, and are described in the Annals of the ...

during the

Elizabethan era The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...

Desmond Rebellions The Desmond Rebellions occurred in 1569–1573 and 1579–1583 in the Irish province of Munster. They were rebellions by the Earl of Desmond, the head of the Fitzmaurice/FitzGerald Dynasty in Munster, and his followers, the Geraldines and ...

. O'Ryan's mother was from the

of the last

Clan O'Dwyer O'Dwyer (Irish: ''Ó Dubhuir''), also known as Dwyer, Dwyre or Dyer is one of Ireland’s oldest Gaelic noble or aristocratic houses, based most prominently in what is today County Tipperary. The name means "dark coloured", in reference to their ...

and

of Upper and Lower Kilnamanagh. O'Ryan was educated in

Catholic Europe The Catholic Church in Europe is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See in Rome, including represented Eastern Catholic missions. Demographically, Catholics are the largest religious group in Europe. Demograph ...

and intended for the priesthood, but "by an affair in which he took a prominent part" had to relinquish that plan. It is said that, during a visit home, O'Ryan was

after shooting a

bailiff A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their offi ...

dead during a quarrel over the confiscation of an elderly and poor woman's only cow. A further background to Captain O'Ryan's career was the confiscation of

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

-owned land after the

Cromwellian conquest of Ireland The Cromwellian conquest of Ireland or Cromwellian war in Ireland (1649–1653) was the re-conquest of Ireland by the forces of the English Parliament, led by Oliver Cromwell, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Cromwell invaded Ireland wi ...

in the Act of Settlement 1652, upon which when many similarly dispossessed

Cavaliers The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...

also became outlaws, known as "tories" or "

s". According to Stephen Dunford, "Ned ranged over his native parish in the aftermath of the shooting. Hunted night and day, he embarked upon a one man crusade against the foreign landlords and authorities. He robbed, he plundered, he disturbed the peace of the area." In one story, O'Ryan held up an Anglo-Irish woman's coach on the road to

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. Upon learning, however, that the £100 was all the woman possessed for her living expenses until her husband returned from England, O'Ryan took only half a crown from the woman's purse and returned the rest. He then told her, "It is Ned of the Hill that has robbed you, madam, and not some common criminal. Be sure to say that when you recount this incident." Moments later, O'Ryan is said to have been robbed at gunpoint by Count

Redmond O'Hanlon Redmond O'Hanlon, FRGS, FRSL (born 5 June 1947) is an English writer and scholar. Life O'Hanlon was born in 1947 in Dorset, England. He was educated at Marlborough College and then Oxford University. After taking his M.Phil. in nineteenth-c ...

, before turning the tables on the outlaw Count and defeating him in a wrestling match. The two outlaws then parted as friends. During the

Williamite War The Williamite War in Ireland (1688–1691; ga, Cogadh an Dá Rí, "war of the two kings"), was a conflict between Jacobite supporters of deposed monarch James II and Williamite supporters of his successor, William III. It is also called th ...

of 1689-91, Éamonn O'Ryan fought for

King James II James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Glorious Re ...

at the

Battle of the Boyne The Battle of the Boyne ( ga, Cath na Bóinne ) was a battle in 1690 between the forces of the deposed King James II of England and Ireland, VII of Scotland, and those of King William III who, with his wife Queen Mary II (his cousin and ...

and the

Battle of Aughrim The Battle of Aughrim ( ga, Cath Eachroma) was the decisive battle of the Williamite War in Ireland. It was fought between the largely Irish Jacobite army loyal to James II and the forces of William III on 12 July 1691 (old style, equivale ...

. O'Ryan also accompanied

Patrick Sarsfield Patrick Sarsfield, 1st Earl of Lucan, ga, Pádraig Sáirseál, circa 1655 to 21 August 1693, was an Irish soldier, and leading figure in the Jacobite army during the 1689 to 1691 Williamite War in Ireland. Born into a wealthy Catholic famil ...

and

Galloping Hogan Michael "Galloping" Hogan was an Irish rapparee or brigand following the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. He was born in the parish of Doon, at the foot of the Slieve Phelim hills in East Limerick, and was possibly a relatively wealthy landowne ...

during the raid that resulted in the destruction of the William of Orange's siege train at

Ballyneety Ballyneety () is a village in County Limerick, Ireland, located approximately 10 km from Limerick city. The village has an 18-hole golf course, petrol station, multiple takeaway restaurants, a pub, a post office, a garden centre, a car de ...

. Author and poet Robert Dwyer Joyce would later dub Edmund O'Ryan, "one of the noblest gentlemen and bravest Rapparee captains that ever drew sword or shook bridle free in the cause of worthless, war-minded King James the Second." During the first siege of Limerick, O'Ryan's cousin, Hugh O'Ryan, also known as "Hugh of Glenurra", was killed in action during an ambush of Williamite troops at the Bridge of Tern. Éamonn O'Ryan, while accompanied by at least one other relative, is said to have subsequently avenged his cousin. After the

Treaty of Limerick }), signed on 3 October 1691, ended the 1689 to 1691 Williamite War in Ireland, a conflict related to the 1688 to 1697 Nine Years' War. It consisted of two separate agreements, one with military terms of surrender, signed by commanders of a Frenc ...

, most of the defeated Jacobite Army sailed from

Limerick City Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

and joined the

Flight of the Wild Geese The Flight of the Wild Geese was the departure of an Irish Jacobite army under the command of Patrick Sarsfield from Ireland to France, as agreed in the Treaty of Limerick on 3 October 1691, following the end of the Williamite War in Ireland. ...

. According to Donal O'Sullivan, "Most, but by no means all. Some of the most gallant and intrepid remained behind to carry on an independent fight by every means in their power: constantly raiding the encampments of the English soldiery, harassing its lines of communication, and retreating into their hideouts in the hills, each man of them with a price in his head. They were known as

Rapparee Rapparees or raparees (from the Irish ''ropairí'', plural of ''ropaire'', whose primary meaning is "thruster, stabber," and by extension a wielder of the half-pike or pike), were Irish guerrilla fighters who operated on the Jacobite side du ...

s ( ga, Ropairí) - what we should now call an underground movement; and one of the most heroic of them all was Edmund Ryan of the Hill." Along with fellow raparees Colonel John Hurley, Colonel Dermot Leary, Captain Matthew Higgins and John Murphy, O'Ryan issued a proclamation in December 1694, denouncing all those disloyal to

, offered a reward of £200 to anyone who brought to them any member of William of Orange's

privy council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

and a further bounty of £50 to anyone who delivered to them a military officer still in arms against the

House of Stuart The House of Stuart, originally spelt Stewart, was a royal house of Scotland, England, Ireland and later Great Britain. The family name comes from the office of High Steward of Scotland, which had been held by the family progenitor Walter fi ...

. According to Donal O'Sullivan, "Precise dates are for the most part lacking; but there existed in the former Irish Record Office (destroyed with all its contents in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

of 1922) a Government Proclamation, dated 1702, offering £200 for the apprehension of 'Edmund Knock Ryan.'"

Personal life

Despite being constantly on the run, Éamonn O'Ryan, according to the local

oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another. Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (1985 ...

, found time to fall in love and get married. While roving through

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

and

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

, Éamonn O'Ryan met Mary Leahy. O'Ryan secretly wooed Leahy while posing as a wandering composer and singer of

and, ultimately, they eloped from the feast celebrating Mary Leahy's imminent wedding to another man. Éamonn O'Ryan is said to have composed for Mary both the song that is now named for him and

love song A love song is a song about romantic love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. A comprehensive list of even the best known performers and composers of love songs would be a large order. ...

''Bean Dubh an Ghleanna''. While no records to confirm their marriage now survive, Éamonn and Mary O'Ryan are said to have had a son, who was taken in and raised by a sympathetic woman from the local

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...

gentry and later became a respected local merchant. Their grandson is said to have become magistrate at the Leinster Assizes, who was known as Judge Mountain.

Death

After many strange vicissitudes, O'Ryan arrived at the Hollyford () home of his kinsman Tomás Bán Ó Dubhuir, also known as ''Dubhuir Broc'' ("Badger Dwyer"), on a rainy evening in 1724. O'Ryan had been pursued for two days by a posse of redcoats and was exhausted. Even though O'Ryan had stood godfather at the

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

of his son, Dwyer let him in and, hoping to collect the £300 reward,

beheaded Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the ...

O'Ryan with a

hatchet A hatchet (from the Old French , a diminutive form of ''hache'', ' axe' of Germanic origin) is a single-handed striking tool with a sharp blade on one side used to cut and split wood, and a hammerhead on the other side. Hatchets may also be us ...

while he slept. Upon bringing the severed head to the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Cashel ( ga, Caiseal), however, Dwyer learned to his chagrin that O'Ryan had been pardoned two days previously and that no reward would be given. Even so, O'Ryan's severed head was confiscated and displayed spiked upon Cashel Gaol for several days, until some local men removed the head and delivered it to the former outlaw's sister, Sally O'Ryan. According to the local

, O'Ryan's body lies buried at Doon (

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

: ''Dún Bleisce''), while his sister, Sally O'Ryan of the Hill, buried her brother's severed head in the Catholic cemetery at Foilachluig, in the

of Toem, in the half barony of

, near the site of his assassination at Hollyford. According Mangan, "the precise spot is marked on sheet 45 of the Ordnance Survey of Tipperary as the grave of Eamonn an Chnoic." In 1962, the grave was found to have been dug up. What was believed to be O'Ryan's skull was taken to the nearest Catholic Church, blessed, and then reburied. In 1963, Matthew Ryan, a relative of the outlaw and retired officer in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, erected a tombstone: ;"Edmund Knock Ryan Ned O' the Hill ;Éamman an Chnoic ;His spirit and song live in the hearts of his people." Stephen Dunford (2000), ''The Irish Highwaymen'', Merlin Publishing. Page 286.

Song variants

The song is usually sung in

, but various

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

versions are popular as well. Other versions also highlight the failure of Ó Riain's countrymen to come to rally to his defence and more strongly emphasize that Ó Riain had been a man of wealth and influence. "Éamonn an Chnoic" has been recorded by countless artists in both English and Irish. Some versions, such as the "Young Ned of the Hill" recorded by

The Pogues The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982, as "Pogue Mahone" – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic ''póg mo thóin'', meaning "kiss my arse". T ...

, adapt the lyrics to a fast-

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

song with only a passing similarity to the original folk song. Completely instrumental versions are also common.

Notes

References

"Ned of the Hill"
(2006). ''Sing Out! The Folk Song Magazine''. Retrieved 26 February 2007.

External links

Podcast - ''The Writers Passage 5 by Steve Dunford''
Dunford narrates biography from Cashel in County Tipperary where Edmond O' Ryan/Éamonn an Chnoic met his end. {{DEFAULTSORT:Eamonn an Chnoic 1724 deaths 17th-century Irish-language poets 17th-century Irish people 18th-century Irish-language poets 18th-century Irish people Assassinated Irish people Assassinations in Ireland Deaths by decapitation Gaels Irish folk songs Irish folklore Irish Jacobites Irish murder victims Irish outlaws Irish soldiers in the army of James II of England Jacobite poets Outlaws People from County Tipperary People murdered in Ireland Songs in Irish The Pogues songs