Oró Sé do Bheatha 'Bhaile
Encyclopedia
Óró, Sé do Bheatha 'Bhaile (sometimes erroneously titled Óró Sé do Bheath Abhaile) (ˈoːɾˠoː ʃeː d̪ˠə ˈvʲahə ˈwalʲə) is a traditional Irish song, that came to be known as an Irish
rebel song
in the early 20th century.
) refers to Bonnie Prince Charlie and dates back to the third Jacobite rising
in 1745-6.
In the early 20th century it received new verses by the nationalist poet
Padraig Pearse and was often sung by IRA
members and sympathisers, during the Easter Rising
. It was also sung as a fast march during the Irish War of Independence
.
Since 1916 it has also been known under various other titles, notably Dord na bhFiann (Call of the Fighters) or An Dord Féinne. The latter title is associated with Padraig Pearse in particular. This version is dedicated to the pirate or "Great Sea Warrior" Gráinne Ní Mháille (Grace O'Malley). She was a formidable power on the west coast of Ireland in the late 16th century.
The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem
,
The Dubliners
,
The Cassidys, Noel McLoughlin, The McPeake Family, Thomas Loefke & Norland Wind,
and the Wolfe Tones
.
Óró Sé do Bheatha 'Bhaile was also sung by sean-nós
singer Darach Ó Catháin, Dónall Ó Dúil (on the album Faoin bhFód) and by Nioclás Tóibín
.
The song has received more modern treatments from John Spillane, The Twilight Lords, Cruachan
, Tom Donovan, and Sinéad O'Connor
.
There is also a classical orchestral version by the Irish Tenors.
Óró Sé do Bheatha 'Bhaile was also used in the 2006 film
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
.
The number and variety of performances indicates how widely known the song is. It was widely sung in state primary schools in the early and middle 20th century.
The air was "borrowed" and used for the popular Sea Shanty, What shall we do with a drunken sailor
.
Boxer Steve Collins used the song as his ring entrance music for all seven of his WBO supermiddleweight title defenses in the mid nineties.
, are as follows:
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
rebel song
Irish rebel music
Irish rebel music is a subgenre of Irish folk music, with much the same instrumentation, but with lyrics predominantly concerned with Irish republicanism.-History:...
in the early 20th century.
History
The song in its original form, Séarlas Óg (meaning "Young Charles" in IrishIrish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
) refers to Bonnie Prince Charlie and dates back to the third Jacobite rising
Jacobite Rising of 1745
The Jacobite rising of 1745, often referred to as "The 'Forty-Five," was the attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for the exiled House of Stuart. The rising occurred during the War of the Austrian Succession when most of the British Army was on the European continent...
in 1745-6.
In the early 20th century it received new verses by the nationalist poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
Padraig Pearse and was often sung by IRA
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
members and sympathisers, during the Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
. It was also sung as a fast march during the Irish War of Independence
Irish War of Independence
The Irish War of Independence , Anglo-Irish War, Black and Tan War, or Tan War was a guerrilla war mounted by the Irish Republican Army against the British government and its forces in Ireland. It began in January 1919, following the Irish Republic's declaration of independence. Both sides agreed...
.
Since 1916 it has also been known under various other titles, notably Dord na bhFiann (Call of the Fighters) or An Dord Féinne. The latter title is associated with Padraig Pearse in particular. This version is dedicated to the pirate or "Great Sea Warrior" Gráinne Ní Mháille (Grace O'Malley). She was a formidable power on the west coast of Ireland in the late 16th century.
Performances and inspiration
The song has been sung widely by ballad groups such asThe Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem
The Clancy Brothers
The Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk music singing group, most popular in the 1960s, they were famed for their woolly Aran jumpers and are widely credited with popularizing Irish traditional music in the United States. The brothers were Patrick "Paddy" Clancy, Tom Clancy, Bobby Clancy...
,
The Dubliners
The Dubliners
The Dubliners are an Irish folk band founded in 1962.-Formation and history:The Dubliners, initially known as "The Ronnie Drew Ballad Group", formed in 1962 and made a name for themselves playing regularly in O'Donoghue's Pub in Dublin...
,
The Cassidys, Noel McLoughlin, The McPeake Family, Thomas Loefke & Norland Wind,
and the Wolfe Tones
Wolfe Tones
The Wolfe Tones are an Irish rebel music band who incorporate elements of Irish traditional music in their songs. They are named after the Irish rebel and patriot Theobald Wolfe Tone, one of the leaders of the Irish Rebellion of 1798, with the double entendre that a wolf tone is a spurious sound...
.
Óró Sé do Bheatha 'Bhaile was also sung by sean-nós
Sean-nós song
Sean-nós is a highly ornamented style of unaccompanied traditional Irish singing. It is a sean-nós activity, which also includes sean-nós dancing...
singer Darach Ó Catháin, Dónall Ó Dúil (on the album Faoin bhFód) and by Nioclás Tóibín
Nioclas Toibin
Nioclás Tóibín was a Sean-nós singer from the Déise tradition of County Waterford in Ireland. Nioclas was winner of Corn Chomhlucht an Oideachais consecutively from 1961 to 1963. The corn is the principal national singing competition in Ireland....
.
The song has received more modern treatments from John Spillane, The Twilight Lords, Cruachan
Cruachan (band)
Cruachan [kroo-a-khawn] is a Celtic metal band from Dublin, Ireland that has been active since the 1990s. They have been acclaimed as having "gone the greatest lengths of anyone in their attempts to expand" the genre of folk metal. They are recognised as one of the founders of the genre of folk metal...
, Tom Donovan, and Sinéad O'Connor
Sinéad O'Connor
Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor is an Irish singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in the late 1980s with her debut album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success in 1990 with a cover of the song "Nothing Compares 2 U"....
.
There is also a classical orchestral version by the Irish Tenors.
Óró Sé do Bheatha 'Bhaile was also used in the 2006 film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
The Wind That Shakes the Barley (film)
The Wind That Shakes the Barley is a 2006 Irish war drama film directed by Ken Loach, set during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War...
.
The number and variety of performances indicates how widely known the song is. It was widely sung in state primary schools in the early and middle 20th century.
The air was "borrowed" and used for the popular Sea Shanty, What shall we do with a drunken sailor
Drunken Sailor
Drunken Sailor is a traditional sea shanty also known as What Shall We Do with the Drunken Sailor?It begins with the question, "What shall we do with a drunken sailor, early in the morning?" Each verse thereafter suggests a method of sobering—or castigating, or simply abusing—the sailor.The song...
.
Boxer Steve Collins used the song as his ring entrance music for all seven of his WBO supermiddleweight title defenses in the mid nineties.
Lyrics
The original versions' lyrics, which are in the public domainPublic domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
, are as follows:
Original Jacobite Version
-
- (Chorus)
- Óró, sé do bheatha 'bhaile,
- Óró, sé do bheatha 'bhaile,
- Óró, sé do bheatha 'bhaile
- Anois ar theacht an tsamhraidh.
- A Shéarlais Óig, a mhic Rí Shéamais
- 'Sé mo mhór-chreach do thriall as Éirinn
- Gan tuinnte bróig' ort, stoca nó leinidh
- Ach do chascairt leis na Gallaibh
-
- Chorus
- 'Sé mo léan géar nach bhfeicim
- Mur mbéinn beo 'na dhiaidh ach seachtain
- Séarlas Óg is míle gaiscidheach
- Ag fógairt fáin ar Ghallaibh
-
- Chorus
- Tá Séarlas Óg ag triall thar sáile
- Béidh siad leisean, Franncaigh is Spáinnigh
- Óglaigh armtha leis mar gharda
- 'S bainfidh siad rinnce as éiricigh!
-
- Chorus
English translation
-
- (Chorus)
- Oh-ro You're welcome home,
- Oh-ro You're welcome home,
- Oh-ro You're welcome home,
- Now that summer's coming!
- Young Charles, son of King James
- It's a great distress – your exile from Ireland
- Without thread of shoe on you, socks or shirt
- Overthrown by the foreigners
-
- Chorus
- Alas that I do not see
- If I were alive afterwards only for a week
- Young Charles and one thousand warriors
- Banishing all the foreigners
-
- Chorus
- Young Charles is coming over the sea
- They will be with him, French and Spanish
- Armed Volunteers with him as a guard
- And they'll make the heretics dance!
-
- Chorus
Padraig Pearse Version
-
- (Chorus)
- Óró, sé do bheatha 'bhaile,
- Óró, sé do bheatha 'bhaile,
- Óró, sé do bheatha 'bhaile
- Anois ar theacht an tsamhraidh.
- 'Sé do bheatha, a bhean ba léanmhar,
- Do b' é ár gcreach tú bheith i ngéibheann,
- Do dhúiche bhreá i seilbh méirleach,
- Is tú díolta leis na Gallaibh.
-
- Chorus
- Tá Gráinne Mhaol ag teacht thar sáile,
- Óglaigh armtha léi mar gharda,
- Gaeil iad féin is ní Gaill ná Spáinnigh,
- Is cuirfidh siad ruaig ar Ghallaibh.
-
- Chorus
- A bhuí le Rí na bhFeart go bhfeiceam,
- Mura mbeam beo ina dhiaidh ach seachtain,
- Gráinne Mhaol agus míle gaiscíoch,
- Ag fógairt fáin ar Ghallaibh.
-
- Chorus
English translation
-
- (Chorus)
- Oh-ro You're welcome home,
- Oh-ro You're welcome home,
- Oh-ro You're welcome home...
- Now that summer's coming!
- Welcome oh woman who was so afflicted,
- It was our ruin that you were in bondage,
- Our fine land in the possession of thieves...
- And you sold to the foreigners!
-
- Chorus
- Gráinne O'Malley is coming over the sea,
- Armed warriors along with her as her guard,
- They are Irishmen, not French nor Spanish...
- And they will rout the foreigners!
-
- Chorus
- May it please the King of Miracles that we might see,
- Although we may live for a week once after,
- Gráinne Mhaol and a thousand warriors...
- Dispersing the foreigners!
-
- Chorus