"Kevin Barry" is a popular

Irish rebel song In the music of Ireland, Irish rebel songs refer to folk songs which are primarily about the various rebellions against English (and later British) Crown rule. Songs about prior rebellions are a popular topic of choice among musicians which supp ...

recounting the death of

Kevin Barry Kevin Gerard Barry (20 January 1902 – 1 November 1920) was an Irish Republican Army (IRA) soldier who was executed by the British Government during the Irish War of Independence. He was sentenced to death for his part in an attack upon a Brit ...

, a member of the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief th ...

(IRA) who was hanged on 1 November 1920. He was 18 years old at the time. He is one of a group of IRA members executed in 1920–21 collectively known as

The Forgotten Ten The Forgotten Ten ( ga, An Deichniúr Dearmadta) were ten members of the Irish Republican Army who were executed in Mountjoy Prison, Dublin, by British forces following courts martial from 1920 to 1921 during the Irish War of Independence. Bas ...

. The ballad was penned shortly after his death by an author whose identity is unknown. Barry's family investigated this in the 1920s, but were only told it was the work of an Irish emigrant living in Glasgow. Some sources claim that it was written by Terrence Ward, a journalist, but this is incorrect: he actually wrote another song about Barry. (At the very least it seems that nobody is actively claiming copyright of this song.) It is sung to the melody of "Rolling Home to Dear Old Ireland" (also known as "Rolling Home to" several other places). It has been performed by many Irish groups including

The Wolfe Tones The Wolfe Tones are an Irish rebel music band that incorporate Irish traditional music in their songs. Formed in 1963, they take their name from Theobald Wolfe Tone, one of the leaders of the Irish Rebellion of 1798, with the double meaning of ...

and

The Clancy Brothers The Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk music group that developed initially as a part of the American folk music revival. Most popular during the 1960s, they were famed for their Aran jumper sweaters and are widely credited with popu ...

. The American singer

Paul Robeson Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, stage and film actor, professional American football, football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplish ...

included it in this album ''Songs of Struggle'', although this version tones down the anti-British sentiment of the original. On at least one occasion, in 1972,

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

covered the song in concert. The song has been one of the most enduringly popular of Irish songs and has been largely responsible for making Kevin Barry a household name. It was said to be so popular with British troops during the

Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...

that it was banned. It was one of many Irish rebel ballads removed from RTÉ playlists during the period of the conflict in Northern Ireland. "Kevin Barry" featured prominently in

Frank McCourt Francis McCourt (August 19, 1930July 19, 2009) was an Irish-American teacher and writer. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his book ''Angela's Ashes'', a tragicomic memoir of the misery and squalor of his childhood. Early life and education Frank Mc ...

's novel ''

Angela's Ashes ''Angela's Ashes: A Memoir'' is a 1996 memoir by the Irish-American author Frank McCourt, with various anecdotes and stories of his childhood. The book details his very early childhood in Brooklyn, New York, US but focuses primarily on his life ...

'', and in the 1999 movie adaptation of the book.

Lyrics

As the author is unknown, there is no definitive version, It can be sung with various verses added or omitted, or without the chorus, or other minor variations. This is one version: :In Mountjoy jail one Monday morning :High upon the gallows tree, :Kevin Barry gave his young life :For the cause of liberty. :Just a lad of eighteen summers, :Still there's no one can deny, :As he walked to death that morning, :He proudly held his head on high. ;Chorus :Shoot me like an Irish soldier. :Do not hang me like a dog, :For I fought to free old Ireland :On that still September morn. :All around the little bakery :Where we fought them hand to hand, :Shoot me like an Irish soldier, :For I fought to free Ireland :Just before he faced the hangman, :In his dreary prison cell,The suggestion that Barry's torture took place in prison shortly before he was hanged is inaccurate. In fact, the ill treatment took place several weeks before his execution, at the North Dublin Union shortly after his arrest on 20 September 1920. :British soldiers tortured Barry, :Just because he would not tell. :The names of his brave comrades, :And other things they wished to know. :Turn informer or we'll kill you :Kevin Barry answered "No". :Proudly standing to attention :While he bade his last farewell :To his broken hearted mother :Whose grief no one can tell. :For the cause he proudly cherished :This sad parting had to be :Then to death walked softly smiling :That old Ireland might be free. :Another martyr for old Ireland, :Another murder for the crown, :Whose brutal laws may kill the Irish, :But can't keep their spirit down. :Lads like Barry are no cowards. :From the foe they will not fly. :Lads like Barry will free Ireland, :For her sake they'll live and die.

References

External links

Ballad lyrics
{{Authority control Irish songs