I began studying this song some 10 years ao when I first performeed it. Since then I've read just about everythin on it and talked to Irish somg experts both here in the UK and back home in Ireland, plus I've met some who knew Patrick Kavanagh, by all accounts not an easy man to get to know and a rather bitter angry figure in his latter days. It's my belief the song is one of unrequited love, firstly in relation to Hilda Moriarty, a most beautiful woman that he was aquainteed with in his 40's when she was ab out 20. There;s no evidence that they ever had a relationship though he certainly 'fancied' her, as did the likes of Fidel Castro and John F Kennedey both of whom she met,

It was Hilda who one day Teased Kavanagh for writing what she called "too much agrcultural poems" and "why not write about people" he duly produced the poem later renamed Raglan Road. But his real unrequited love was Ireland in the shape of the Irish government, he was hugely critical of the Cathlic churches involvment in matters of state and vice versa. He also felt he never got the recognition of the state while others, particularl his former friend Brendan Behan became a showbiz celebrity feted my the English and American media. He was once heard to say outside Behan's Dublin appartment "look at him the auld queen lording it up there while I can't sell an article. And there I'm sure was the birth of 'the Queen of hearts' line. Fact is Behan was a great humerous charmer while Kavanagh had become often too drunk to write. Raglan Road I'm sure was written in Classic Irish fable form so that Kavanagh could finally have is say and leave Ireland frustrated by never telling people what exactly the song meant. In my opinion one the greatest pieces of Irish literature, though never recognised in life Kavanagh's words have since been imortalised, I think it should be sub titled Up Yours Ireland