The Fenian Boy |The Ballad of Billy Byrne | Irish Rebel Song Of 1798
The Fenian Boy — The True Story of Billy Byrne of Ballymanus The Fenian Boy is a ballad rooted not in legend or romantic invention, but in hard Irish history. Billy Byrne of Ballymanus was a living man — a Wicklow farmer, born into ordinary soil, who made an extraordinary choice during the Rising of 1798. When the Crown demanded loyalty, when neighbours took the oath to save their own lives and livelihoods, Billy refused. He would not kneel. He would not sign. He would not surrender his country for safety or coin. The story of Billy Byrne has survived not because he led armies — but because he embodied the quiet, stubborn integrity that terrified empires more than muskets ever could. While his own brother swore the redcoat oath, Billy would rather face the scaffold than confess submission. For that defiance he was betrayed — not by an English rifle, but by whiskey-loosened tongues and fearful men in dark corners. He was dragged to Wicklow Gaol, tried in haste, and hanged in 1799. H...