On Raglan Road

"On Raglan Road" is a well-known Irish song from a poem written by Irish poet Patrick Kavanagh named after Raglan Road in Ballsbridge, Dublin. In the poem, the speaker recalls a love affair that he had with a young woman while walking on a "quiet street". Although the speaker knew that he would risk being hurt if he initiated a relationship, he did so anyway.

History

As a poem

It was first published as a poem in The Irish Press on 3 October 1946 under the title "Dark Haired Miriam Ran Away."Peter Kavanagh, Patrick's brother, said that "it was written about Patrick's girlfriend Hilda but to avoid embarrassment he used the name of my girlfriend in the title". Her real name was Dr. Hilda Moriarty, then a medical student from County Kerry, who later married Donogh O'Malley, the Irish Minister for Education. Their son is the actor Daragh O'Malley.

In 1987, Hilda Moriarty was interviewed by the Irish broadcaster RTÉ for a documentary about Kavanagh called Gentle Tiger. In the interview, she said one of the main reasons for the failure of their relationship was that there was a wide age gap between them. She was only 22, whereas he was 40.

Raglan Road

Raglan Road can refer to:

Raglan Road, Dublin

Raglan Road is a road running between Pembroke Road and Clyde Road in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 Ireland.

History

The road came into existence in 1857, on the conclusion of peace after the Crimean War, and was named after Lord Raglan (Fitzroy Somerset 1788–1855), the first Chief Commander in that war. Nearby Elgin and Clyde Roads, which commemorate James Bruce, Earl of Elgin, and Colin Campbell, Lord Clyde, both died 1863, were opened in 1863–64 (Campbell fought in the Indian Rebellion of 1857; Bruce was Viceroy of India, 1862-63).

Towards the later end of the 19th century Raglan Road and the surrounding township of Pembroke became the new residential home of the Anglo-Irish aristocracy. During the 18th and mid 19th centuries the Irish upper classes had maintained Dublin homes in the Georgian squares of the city, such as Fitzwilliam and Merrion squares on Dublin's Southside. However, the further expansion of Dublin in the 1850s lead to new residences being created. These roads, such as Raglan Road, boasted a position further away from the street and had large gardens. This new style of housing began to draw the aristocracy to the area. However, a reasonable number of families choose to maintain their Georgian homes in Dublin, most of these were in the areas surrounding either Fitzwilliam Square and Merrion Square.