by
James Gillray United Irishmen The phrase was used by the
United Irishmen organisation in the 1790s.
Emigrant nationalism In 1847, a group of Irish volunteers, including U.S. Army deserters, joined the Mexican side in the
Mexican–American War. These soldiers, known as or
Saint Patrick's Battalion, flew as their standard a green flag with a harp and the motto
Erin Go Bragh. Similar flag designs have been used at different times to express Irish nationalism. In 1862, when a large number of families on the estate of
Lord Digby, near
Tullamore,
County Offaly, were given notice to quit, a local priest, Father Paddy Dunne, arranged passage for 400 people to Australia. A ship was chartered from the
Black Ball Line and named the
Erin-go-Bragh. The voyage of the
Erin-go-Bragh, a "crazy, leaky tub", took 196 days, the longest recorded passage to Australia. A passenger nicknamed the ship the "Erin-go-Slow", but eventually it landed in
Moreton Bay near
Brisbane. A
pub in
Sydney, Australia, in the 19th century that catered to Irish immigrants was called
The Erin-Go-Bragh.
Unionism At the height of decades of negotiation regarding
home rule in Ireland, in the late 19th century the
Irish Unionist Party used the slogan on a banner at one of their conventions, expressing their pride in
Irish identity.
Sport In the late 19th century, the Edinburgh
football club
Hibernian F.C. adopted
Erin Go Bragh as their motto and it adorned their shirts accordingly. Founded in 1875 by Edinburgh Irishmen and the local Catholic Church, St Patrick's, the club's shirts included a gold harp set on a green background. The flag can still be seen at Hibernian matches to this day. In 1887, a
gaelic games club was set up in
Clonsilla,
Dublin under the name
Erin go Bragh GAA. There is also an "Erin go Bragh GAA" club in
Warwickshire,
England. In 1906, three Irishmen went to Athens, Greece to compete in the
1906 Intercalated Olympics as an Irish team independent of Britain. They had distinct uniforms and intended to compete for the first time as representatives of their own country. Once in Athens, the Irishmen became aware that the British committee had decided that they would instead compete under the British flag.
Peter O'Connor won the silver medal for the long jump. As he was about to receive his medal he rushed towards the flag pole, climbed the pole, and flew the Erin Go Bragh flag, as the Tricolour had not yet received widespread acceptance. The other Irish athletes and a number of Irish-American athletes fended off security for a few minutes while the flag was flown. It was the first time an Irish flag had been flown at a sporting event.
Other uses Parade in New York, 1951 • A traditional Scottish song from the 19th century entitled "Erin-go-Bragh" tells the story of a
Highland Scot who is mistaken for an Irishman. The first two verses are: •
Patrick Keohane, an Irish member of the
Terra Nova Expedition in Antarctica from 1910–1913, used a sledge flag consisting of the motto "ERIN GO BRAUGH" beneath a gold harp on a green field, with a
Cross of Saint George in the hoist. •
Erin Go Bragh is the
motif of the episode
The Kidnapped Prime Minister in series two of ''
Agatha Christie's Poirot'', originally aired in 1990. • A version of the traditional Scottish song opens
Dick Gaughan's 1981 album
Handful of Earth.
Andy Irvine and
Patrick Street recorded Gaughan's version of the song on their 2007 album
On the Fly. • The expression was paraphrased by a
punning
New York Times headline
Erin go broke, written by economist
Paul Krugman, referring to the post-2008
Irish financial crisis. • In the 2009 film
The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day Norman Reedus's character Murphy MacManus phrases it as: "It's Irish for, 'you're fucked.'" • "Erin go Bragh" (1943) is also a rhapsody for brass band, composed by Joan Trimble (1915–2000) •
Peadar Kearney, author of the Irish national anthem, wrote a song entitled 'Erin go Bragh'. The song tells about the
Easter Rising in Dublin in sarcastic fashion, with all 6 verses ending in "Erin Go Bragh". • In 1969, the band
The Wolfe Tones released a cover of
Kearney's song "Erin Go Bragh" on their LP
Rifles of the I.R.A. == See also ==