Lyr Req: Slievenamon

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Slievenamon
From: GUEST,Gabriel
Date: 20 Oct 11 - 02:50 PM

I have always adored this song.

The one reference in it that I simply don't understand is the 5th line of the second verse. 'Twas the soul of truth, and of melting ruth'.

What in heaven's name is 'melting ruth' about?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Slievenamon
From: MartinRyan
Date: 20 Oct 11 - 03:13 PM

Archaic sense of "ruth" - regret, sorrow.

Regards

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Slievenamon
From: GUEST
Date: 10 Sep 18 - 01:39 PM

Of course those two verses would not be in Sliabh na mBan, which is quite clearly a United Irishman song, an organisation which opposed any conflicts between different religious affiliations and called for the unity of "Catholic, Protestant and Dissenter" (i.e Catholic, Anglican and Non-episcopalian Protestant sects but didn't mention atheists!).

It is generally thought to have been composed by Mícheál Óg Ó Longáin, a United Irishman who it is believed participated in the Rising and had to go on the run afterwards, one of the few Irish-language poets or song composers dealing withe the United irish at the time, a movement the leadership of which was mostly of colonist background with English as their primary language. In addition, revolutionary Republican ideas were coming in from France, England, Scotland and the US, so that most of those too were in English.