or () is a traditional Irish song that came to be known as a rebel song in the early twentieth century. is a

cheer Cheering involves the uttering or making of sounds and may be used to encourage, excite to action, indicate approval or welcome. The word cheer originally meant face, countenance, or expression, and came through Old French into Middle English" ...

, whilst means "you are welcome home".

History

Similarly to many

folk songs Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...

, the origins of this song are obscure. While the melody bears a resemblance to the nineteenth century English sea shanty "

Drunken Sailor "Drunken Sailor", also known as "What Shall We Do with a/the Drunken Sailor?" or "Up She Rises", is a traditional sea shanty, listed as List of folk songs by Roud number, No. 322 in the Roud Folk Song Index. It was sung aboard sailing ships at ...

", several versions of the Irish tune and chorus are identifiable. In 1884, Francis Hogan of Brenormore, near

Carrick-on-Suir Carrick-on-Suir () is a town in County Tipperary, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It lies on both banks of the River Suir. The part on the north bank of the Suir lies in the Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of "Carrick", in the historical B ...

, then "well over seventy years of age", reported that "this song used to be played at the 'Hauling Home', or the bringing home of a wife". The "hauling home" was a

ceremony A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan language, Etruscan origin, via the Latin . Religious and civil ...

that took place a month after a wedding when a

bride A bride is a woman who is about to be married or who is a newlywed. When marrying, if the bride's future spouse is a man, he is usually referred to as the ''bridegroom'' or just ''groom''. In Western culture, a bride may be attended by a maid, ...

was brought to live in her new husband's home. This version consists only of the chorus. also records a similar refrain in 1915 from the Barony of Farney, "but the song to which it belonged was lost before my time". There is no mention of "hauling home" and the line that

P. W. Joyce Patrick Weston "P. W." Joyce (1827 – 7 January 1914) was an Irish historian, writer and music collector, known particularly for his research in Irish etymology and local place names of Ireland. Biography He was born in Ballyorgan in the Ba ...

gives as is instead . This song has also been associated with the Jacobite cause as the traditional version mentions , referring to

Bonnie Prince Charlie Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, ...

and dating the song to the third Jacobite rising of 1745–1746. The tune appears as number 1425 in George Petrie's ''The Complete Collection of Irish Music'' (1855) under the title (modern script: ) and is marked "Ancient clan march". It can also be found at number 983 (also marked "Ancient Clan March") and as a fragment at number 1056, titled "Welcome home Prince Charley". In the early twentieth century, it received new verses by the nationalist poet

Patrick Pearse Patrick Henry Pearse (also known as Pádraig or Pádraic Pearse; ; 10 November 1879 – 3 May 1916) was an Irish teacher, barrister, Irish poetry, poet, writer, Irish nationalism, nationalist, Irish republicanism, republican political activist a ...

and was often sung by members of the

Irish Volunteers The Irish Volunteers (), also known as the Irish Volunteer Force or the Irish Volunteer Army, was a paramilitary organisation established in 1913 by nationalists and republicans in Ireland. It was ostensibly formed in response to the format ...

during the

Easter Rising The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an ind ...

. It was also sung as a fast march during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence (), also known as the Anglo-Irish War, was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (1919–1922), Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and Unite ...

. Since 1916, it has also been known under various other titles, notably or . The latter title is associated with Pearse in particular as the

chanted the song during the

. This version features the pirate or "Great Sea Warrior"

Grace O'Malley Gráinne O'Malley (, ; – ), also known as Grace O'Malley, was the head of the Ó Máille dynasty in the west of Ireland, and the daughter of Eóghan Dubhdara Ó Máille. Upon her father's death, she took over active leadership of the lords ...

, a formidable power on the west coast of Ireland in the late sixteenth century. Pearse shows his knowledge of the Jacobite version in the way he adapts it to the new independence cause. He emphasises the Irishness of the fighters by substituting native Grace for foreign Prince Charlie and changing to .

Recordings

The song was recorded by

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 ...

on their 1987 album '' 25 Years Celebration'', by Cruachan on their 1995 album '' Tuatha na Gael'', by

Sinéad O'Connor Shuhada' Sadaqat (born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor; , ; 8 December 1966 – 26 July 2023) was an Irish singer, songwriter, record producer and activist. Her debut studio album, ''The Lion and the Cobra'', was released in 1987 and achieve ...

on her 2002 album '' Sean-Nós Nua'' as well as her 2003 album ''

She Who Dwells in the Secret Place of the Most High Shall Abide Under the Shadow of the Almighty ''She Who Dwells in the Secret Place of the Most High Shall Abide Under the Shadow of the Almighty'' is a 2003 double album by Sinéad O'Connor. It is a two-compact disc, CD set. The first CD collects several rare tracks O'Connor recorded as B- ...

'', and by the Irish band Seo Linn in 2023.

Lyrics

Original version

Jacobite version

Pádraig Pearse version

Notes

External links

*
Covers
at

WhoSampled WhoSampled is a website and app database of information about sampled music or sample-based music, interpolations, cover songs and remixes. As of April 2025, the website features 1,155,375 songs and 355,929 artists in its catalog. History ...

"Oro! Se Do Bheatha Bhaile" as sing by Derek Warfield and The Young Wolfe Tones"Oro! Se Do Bheatha Bhaile" (Original Jacobite version)Rare version of "Oro! Se Do Bheatha Bhaile"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oro Se Do Bheatha Abhaile Folk ballads Irish folk songs Irish Jacobites Irish patriotic songs Jacobite songs Songs in Irish The Dubliners songs Traditional ballads Cultural depictions of James Francis Edward Stuart 1910s in Irish music