THE VALLEY OF KNOCKANURE

"The Valley of Knockanure" is a ballad commemorating an incident that occurred during the Irish War of Independence at Gortaglanna near Knockanure, County Kerry, Ireland. It was written by teacher and poet Bryan MacMahon at the request of a local schoolmaster, Pádraig Ó Ceallacháin. On 12 May 1921, a troop of Black and Tans were travelling out from Listowel when they arrested four young unarmed men in Gortaglanna. Prior to this the barracks in Listowel had been burnt out and the troops, heavy with drink and bent on revenge decided to execute the young men. The first to be shot was Jerry Lyons. When this happened, Cornelius Dee decided, as he was going to be shot anyway, to make a run for it. He did, and almost immediately took a bullet in the thigh but managed to keep going. He ran for about three miles and survived. He was never recaptured but remained in hiding until the Truce. The other two men were shot on the spot. Today a memorial stands by the roadside where the three died. I have changed the lyrics slightly to make it more historically accurate. Apparently this song is not advertiser friendly for some reason.

[@MK-pk1zw]

excellent!

[@PadraigGrimes]

Thank you so much for your kind comment, so glad you liked it.

[@erinm866]

How have I not found this before now? Fantastic!

[@PadraigGrimes]

Thank you so much, it's really starting to get lots of views in the last while. I don't understand how you tube works sometimes. Thanks again, P.

[@CrawfishParish]

That is great!

[@francisdonnelly9041]

Terrific. Thank you.

[@PadraigGrimes]

Thank you very much, its a great song.

[@oscarharris7895]

That's fantastic. Is there a valley in Knockanure? I drive past the memorial twice a day to and from work and can't figure out where the valley is. It might be poetic license, or it might refer to civil parishes that existed in the past.

[@PadraigGrimes]

Thank you for your nice comment. From what I can gather there is no valley but don't quote me on that. Gortaglanna where it happened seems to be an area of Knockanure. I have in-laws living in Ballylongford which is not too far away from there and because of that I am familiar with a lot of kerry but I have not been to see the monument yet, I feel I must someday.

[@robertflint2549]

You have a great resonant voice there Padraig. Nice rendition of this fine tune.

[@PadraigGrimes]

Thank you so much, that was a few years ago, maybe it's time to give it another go.