Remember the Glories of Brian the Brave

DESCRIPTION: "Remember the glories of Brian the brave... To light us to victory yet." Tell the invading Danes that we prefer "to bleed for an age ... than to sleep but a moment in chains." Do not let those that died "upon Ossory's plain" have fallen in vain
AUTHOR: Thomas Moore (1779-1852)
EARLIEST DATE: 1846 (Moore-IrishMelodies-1846)
KEYWORDS: battle nonballad patriotic Ireland
HISTORICAL REFERENCES:
Apr 23, 1014 - Battle of Clontarf. Victory and death of Brian Boru
FOUND IN:
REFERENCES (4 citations):
Moore-IrishMelodies-1846, pp. 8-10, "(Remember the glories of Brien the Brave" (1 text)
O'Conor-OldTimeSongsAndBalladOfIreland, p. 48, "Brian the Brave" (1 text)
Hylands-Mammoth-Hibernian-Songster, p. 48, "Remember the Glories of Brian the Brave" (1 text)
ADDITIONAL: Edward Hayes, The Ballads of Ireland (Boston, 1859), Vol I, p. 111, "Brian the Brave"
Roud #12820
BROADSIDES:
Bodleian, Harding B 26(75), "Brian the Brave", The Poet's Box (Belfast), 1846-1852; also Harding B 15(33a), "Brian the Brave"
ALTERNATE TITLES:
Brien the Brave
NOTES [139 words]: Brian Boru (Bóruma), born c. 942, became king of Munster after the murder of his brother Mathgamain in 976, and then set out to become High King of Ireland. By about 1002, he was recognized as such by most major Irish lords.
Although Brian's enemies are called Danes in the song, in fact they were Viking raiders allied with rebels from Leinster (see, e.g. Mike Cronin, A History of Ireland, p. 8; Peter and Fiona Somerset Fry, A History of Ireland, p. 56). The two sides met at the Battle of Clontarf, on Good Friday 1014, and Brian's Munster forces were victorious though he was slain. In practice, that was a defeat for Brian, since it ended the fragile Irish unity. The Vikings did go away, for the most part -- but that was more because Swein Forkbeard and his son Canute were conquering England than anything else. - RBW, (BS)
Last updated in version 6.1
File: OCon048

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