School: Kilkea, Mageney (roll number 9123)
- Location:
- Kilkea Lodge Farm, Co. Kildare
- Teacher: Cáit Ní Chába
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0781, Page 277
Image and data © National Folklore Collection, UCD.
See copyright details.
DownloadOpen data
Available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Note: We will soon deprecate our XML Application Programming Interface and a new, comprehensive JSON API will be made available. Keep an eye on our website for further details.
On this page
- In gentle life and high degree
And beauty could avail
To shield from ill, it were not mine
To tell so sad a tale.
If knightly valour, noble birth
Misfortune could repel,
Or wisdom save, it were not mine
So sad a tale to tell.
Ten mighty Earls from sire to son
Of Gerald's noble name
Maintained their own, or fought for more,
Or merely fought for fame.
But he the next contended hard,
With fierce resolve and stern,
To wrest from Powers below their power
And all their wisdom learn
Till so for ways of witchery,
And arts of darkness famed
In all the land, that he at last
"The Wizard Earl" was named.
And oft and oft was he besought
By his lady good and true,
To show her all his power, and he
Transformed within her view.
But ever he forewarned her
That if her gentle heart
Gave any sign of fear, he must
From her for ever part;
Till overpressed by loving words
He set her trials three,
That if she gave no sign of fear
He would transforme'd be.(continues on next page)
