Beggars Bush () is the site of the former

Beggars Bush Barracks Beggars Bush Barracks was a British Army barracks located at Beggars Bush in Dublin, Ireland. History The barracks were designed as a training depot for the British Army and were completed in 1827, built on lands received from George Herbert, 1 ...

on Haddington Road in the inner southern suburbs of

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, as well the surrounding area and a nearby pub. The barracks were bordered to the east by

Shelbourne Road Shelbourne Road () is a road in Ballsbridge, in the southeast part of Dublin, Ireland. History In John Rocque's map of 1756, today's Shelbourne Road and Upper Grand Canal Street, from which it extends, appear together as Beggars' Bush Road. '' ...

, which used to be the western bank of the

River Dodder The River Dodder () is one of the three main rivers in Dublin, Ireland, the others being the River Liffey, Liffey, of which the Dodder is the largest tributary, and the River Tolka, Tolka. Course and system The Dodder rises on the northern s ...

. The locality is in the jurisdiction of

Dublin City Council Dublin City Council () is the Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authority of the city of Dublin in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the authority was k ...

, is broadly considered to be part of

Ballsbridge Ballsbridge () (from historic Ball's Bridge) is an affluent neighbourhood of the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. The area is largely situated north and west of a three-arch stone bridge across the River Dodder, on the south side of the ...

, and is in the postal district

Dublin 4 Dublin 4, also rendered as D4 and D04, is a historic postal district of Dublin, Ireland including Baggot Street Upper, the southernmost fringes of the Dublin Docklands, and the suburbs of Ballsbridge, Donnybrook, Irishtown, Merrion, Ringsend ...

History

Archbishop Alen's register refers to the area as Beggarsditch as far back as 1326. The earliest specific mention is a 1573 reference to "the wood called Beggars boush". Neil Howlett notes earlier instances of "Beggars Bush" as a minor placename in England, usually denoting poor-quality farmland. The idea that it denoted a meeting place for

beggar Begging (also known in North America as panhandling) is the practice of imploring others to grant a favor, often a gift of money, with little or no expectation of reciprocation. A person doing such is called a beggar or panhandler. Beggars m ...

s or a

thieves Theft (, cognate to ) is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal short ...

' den is rejected by Howlett as a

folk etymology Folk etymology – also known as (generative) popular etymology, analogical reformation, (morphological) reanalysis and etymological reinterpretation – is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a mo ...

originating in ''

Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable ''Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable'', sometimes referred to simply as ''Brewer's'', is a reference work containing definitions and explanations of many famous phrases, allusions, and figures, whether historical or mythical. The "New Edi ...

''. The site has been occupied by a pub since at least 1803. It was also occupied by the

from 1827 until 1929 but is now the home of the Irish Labour History Society Museum, National Print Museum, and the former home of the Labour Relations Commission and the

Geological Survey of Ireland Geological Survey Ireland or Geological Survey of Ireland (), founded in 1845, is the National Earth Science agency of Ireland. Overview Geological Survey Ireland is a division of the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment a ...

Trivia

*Beggars Bush is mentioned in the song Whiskey on a Sunday, in the versions made popular by performers including

The Irish Rovers The Irish Rovers is a group of Irish musicians that formed in Toronto, Canada in 1963'Irish Rovers are Digging out those old Folk songs', By Ballymena Weekly Editor, Ballymena Weekly Telegraph, N. Ireland – 20 August 1964 and named after the ...

and

The Dubliners The Dubliners () were an Folk music of Ireland, Irish folk band founded in Dublin in 1962 as The Ronnie Drew Ballad Group, named after its founding member; they subsequently renamed themselves The Dubliners. The line-up saw many changes in pers ...

. *

Flogging Molly Flogging Molly is an Irish-American seven-piece Celtic punk band formed in Los Angeles in 1997, led by Irish vocalist Dave King, formerly of the hard rock band Fastway. They are signed to their own record label, Borstal Beat Records. Histor ...

lead singer and guitarist Dave King grew up in Beggars Bush, and the band recorded a song called "The Ol' Beggars Bush" on their album ''

Swagger A swagger or swagga is a swaggering gait. Swagger also may refer to: * Swagger or swagman, a transient labourer in Australia and New Zealand * Swagger (software), a specification for defining the interface of a REST web service * Swagger Creek, ...

''. Also on the album was the song "Life in Tenement Square" which is believed to reference the area.

References

{{coord, 53.336371, N, 6.235284, W, type:landmark_region:IE, display=title Ballsbridge Towns and villages in Dublin (city) Townlands of County Dublin