The Wild Irish Girl
Encyclopedia
The Wild Irish Girl; a National Tale is an epistolary novel
written by Irish
novel
ist Sydney Owenson (later Lady Morgan) in 1806.
(i.e. County Mayo
) as punishment for accumulating large debts. The novel consists of letters written by Horatio to his friend J.D., an MP. He finds a dilapidated castle and the remnants of the Catholic Gaelic nobility that was displaced by his ancestors after the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland
. He acquires a new respect for Irish history and culture and falls in love with an Irish princess named Glorvina.
Epistolary novel
An epistolary novel is a novel written as a series of documents. The usual form is letters, although diary entries, newspaper clippings and other documents are sometimes used. Recently, electronic "documents" such as recordings and radio, blogs, and e-mails have also come into use...
written by Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
ist Sydney Owenson (later Lady Morgan) in 1806.
Plot
The Hon. Horatio M———, son of the Earl of M———, is banished to his father's estate on the northwest coast of ConnachtConnacht
Connacht , formerly anglicised as Connaught, is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the west of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for...
(i.e. County Mayo
County Mayo
County Mayo is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Mayo, which is now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Council is the local authority for the county. The population of the county is 130,552...
) as punishment for accumulating large debts. The novel consists of letters written by Horatio to his friend J.D., an MP. He finds a dilapidated castle and the remnants of the Catholic Gaelic nobility that was displaced by his ancestors after the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland
Cromwellian conquest of Ireland
The Cromwellian conquest of Ireland refers to the conquest of Ireland by the forces of the English Parliament, led by Oliver Cromwell during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Cromwell landed in Ireland with his New Model Army on behalf of England's Rump Parliament in 1649...
. He acquires a new respect for Irish history and culture and falls in love with an Irish princess named Glorvina.