Pádhraic Ó Domhnalláin
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Pádhraic Ó Domhnalláin () was an Irish
duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...
list.


Outline

Ó Domhnalláin was the
eponymous An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...
subject of a poem by Antoine Ó Raifteiri, concerning a duel he fought, which is believed to have been one of the last, if not the last, ever fought in
County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...
, once notorious for such events.


Circumstances

Ó Domhnalláin was from Balleighter or Ballydonnellan. He was a good friend with Patrick Callanan of Skycur but a dispute arose one night during at party at Callanan's house. Ó Domhnalláin initially did not wish to attend as he did not have suitable clothes, but Callanan loaned him something suitable.


Causes of the duel

During the party, Ó Domhnalláin made advances towards a good-looking young blonde woman, who was Callanan's lover. Words were exchanged between the two men, and a challenge for a duel was issued. They agreed to meet in Madden's field at Belview. Both arrived at the appointed time with two large crowds of followers. Callanan was recorded as being in a good mood because he had a well-earned reputation as a marksman.


The duel

Just before the duel was to start, a nervous Ó Domhnalláin attempted to make up with Callanan, who very bluntly refused. The men were placed some twenty to thirty yards apart and the ring of the signal bell, both fired. It was Ó Domhnalláin, however, ''who proved to have the greater speed and agility and fired first. Callanan dropped to the ground and died immediately.''


Afterwards

Raifteiri composed a
ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...
on the event congratulating Ó Domhnalláin, in a tone that suggests the poem was seeking favour from him. The identity and fate of Callanan's lover is unknown.


Ancestry

He was a descendant of King Dluthach mac Fithcheallach of Ui Maine.


See also

* Flann Óge Ó Domhnalláin, chief poet of
Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...
, died 1342. * Padraig Ó Domhnallain,
short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...
writer, born 1884. *
John Donnellan John F. Donnellan (born 27 March 1937) is an Irish former politician and sportsman. He served as a Fine Gael Teachta Dála (TD) for twenty-five years and as a Minister of State from 1982 to 1987. He played Gaelic football for his local club Du ...
, former Irish politician and sportsperson, born 1937.


References

* ''The Parish of Lawrencetown and Kiltormer'', Tadhg Mac Lochlainn, 1982. {{DEFAULTSORT:O Domhnallain, Padhraic People from County Galway Irish duellists 19th-century Irish people