The Vow of Tipperary | Irish Rebel Song & Ballad
The Vow of Tipperary — A Defiant Ballad of Ireland’s Rebel Heart The Vow of Tipperary is one of the great rebel anthems of 19th-century Ireland — a proud declaration of independence born from betrayal and courage. Its verses call out from Carrick streets to the Shannon shore , summoning the sons of Tipperary to stand as one and cast off the yoke of empire. The song opens as a rallying cry that sweeps across the Irish landscape — from Slievenamon to Galtymore , from Longford Pass to Ballindeary — every mountain and field answering the call. It unites a people long divided by poverty and politics beneath one simple, sacred promise: “Never to list in British ranks.” In just a few verses, the ballad captures centuries of struggle. Ireland’s young men had fought in Britain’s wars — on European battlefields and distant colonies — shedding their blood for a crown that rewarded them only with tyrant laws and eviction from their own homes. When they returned to Tipperary, they found h...