School: Crury (roll number 3134)

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1. Local Poets

   

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   Ireland was always noted for her poets or bards so they were called in ancient times. They have played a very prominent part in our history especially during the early period when every chieftain had a bard of his own. They were noted because of the songs and poems they composed about battles and how their chiefs fared in these encounters. If their chieftains and their followers won a battle the bards were supposed to make lyrics about it.
   The only famous poets who lived in this district were the McWards who were the bards ot the O'Donnells. They lived at Wardtown-a townland named after them which lies west of Ballyshannon. Not much is known about them except that they composed many famous battle songs. The only famous poet who lived in this district during the nineteenth century was William Allingham who was born in Ballyshannon in 1824. At the early age of thirteen he became a clerk in a local bank but he was keener on literature and poetry than on the bank work. Six years later he got an appointment in the customs. He sent poems and stories to (an) English magazine and at the age of twenty six he wrote a book of poems which was published. He was then transferred to

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. genre
      1. poetry
         1. folk poetry (~9,504)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Patrick J. Gillispie

   Gender

   Male

   Address

   Sheegys, Co. Donegal