Tomás Bán Mac Aodhagáin (IPA: t̪ˠʊmˠaːsˠˈbˠaːnˠˈmˠakˈiːəɡaːnʲ is the name both of a person and of a song inspired by his life. A native of
County Mayo
County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...
, Mac Aodhagain fell in love with and
eloped
Elopement is a term that is used in reference to a marriage which is conducted in a sudden and secretive fashion, usually involving a hurried flight away from one's place of residence together with one's beloved with the intention of getting ma ...
with a Ms. Stanley, daughter of an Anglo-Irishman who had settled in Ireland during the
plantations
A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
. The daughter's father pursued the couple, captured them, and sentenced Mac Aodhagain to be hanged.
O'Rourke writes that "According to folklore, Thomas did not in fact hang; the girl made the song before the sentence was due to be carried out, and the jury was so touched that he was set free. It sounds like wish fulfillment, but even if it were true, her 'provisional lament' would be no less remarkable, as a dramatic presentation of partly imagined events."
A location mentioned in the song is Cluain Aoidh, near
Partry
Partry ( ga, Partraí) is a villagePartry Placenames Database of Ireland. Retrieved: 2012-04-15. and a
Brian O'Rourke
Sir Brian O'Rourke ( ga, Sir Brian na Múrtha Ó Ruairc; c. 1540 – 1591) was first king and then lord of West Breifne in Ireland from 1566 until his execution in 1591. He reigned during the later stages of the Tudor conquest of Ireland and hi ...