''The Shaughraun'' () is a melodramatic play written by Irish

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

Dion Boucicault. It was first performed at Wallack's Theatre, New York, on 14 November 1874. Dion Boucicault played Conn in the original production. The play was a huge success, making half a million dollars for Boucicault.

Plot

Robert Ffolliott, fiancé of Arte O'Neale, has returned to

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

after escaping from transportation to Australia. He was in part sent as a result of Kinchela's desire for ownership of the O’Neale property. However, two things stand in Kinchela's way: a curse on the property that brings death to all inhabitants that are not a part of certain Irish gentry families (Arte O’Neale being from one of said families), and the engagement of Robert to Arte. Kinchela thus conspires with police informant Harvey Duff to have Robert arrested as a

Fenian The word ''Fenian'' () served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood, secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries dedicate ...

fugitive A fugitive (or runaway) is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from jail, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals. A fugitive from justice, also kn ...

, and sent on a ship to Australia. However the true nature of Robert’s possible Fenian political status and theoretical involvement is left ambiguous throughout the play. Kinchela then defrauds Claire and Arte by lowering the rent of the properties surrounding theirs, deceitfully forcing them to have him purchase the property. Robert escapes due to Conn the Shaughraun ( Irish ''seachránaí'' = wanderer, errant person, a roguish poacher who provides a great deal of comic relief.) conning his way onto the ship. The two of them then con their way onto another ship heading back to Ireland and Robert is reunited with Arte at Father Dolan’s. Robert sees Duff’s face in the window and begins to panic, but Duff flees before the others can see him as well. Molineaux searches the house for Robert with great disdain, willing to call off the search if he receives the trustworthy word of a

catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

(Father Dolan). Father Dolan struggles greatly, unable to lie, and Robert gives himself up so that the Father does not need to. Kinchela receives a letter detailing the Queen's

pardon A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...

ing of the Fenians. Kinchela and Duff fear the freedom of Robert foiling their plans, so they plot to kill him by having Kinchela come to Robert as a 'friend' and convince him of an escape plan, ultimately having the police intercept and shoot him due to their current inclination to result to "extreme measures". Conn interferes with their plans, bursting Robert out of prison and playing the red herring so the henchmen shoot him dead. However, he is not actually dead, but uses the faking of his death and following

wake Wake or The Wake may refer to: Culture *Wake (ceremony), a ritual which takes place during some funeral ceremonies *Wakes week, an English holiday tradition * Parish Wake, another name of the Welsh ', the fairs held on the local parish's patron s ...

to assist in catching the culprits. Meanwhile, Kinchela and Duff abduct Arte and Moya, planning to take them away with them. Robert's sister, Claire Ffolliott, is in love with an English

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Molineaux, who is tracking down Fenians in the area. She cannot decide whether or not to protect her brother or betray the Captain. She takes the side of her brother, fooling Molineaux and leading him away, but cannot go through with it and comes clean to him. The wake is held for Conn, allowing him to eavesdrop on the henchmen and discover Arte and Moya's location. Molineaux, having received news of the pardon, joins Conn to catch the culprits. Meanwhile, Arte and Moya overthrow Duff and Kinchela, and all ends well. The Fenians receive a general

amnesty Amnesty (from the Ancient Greek ἀμνηστία, ''amnestia'', "forgetfulness, passing over") is defined as "A pardon extended by the government to a group or class of people, usually for a political offense; the act of a sovereign power offic ...

, the couples marry, Kinchela is arrested, and Harvey Duff falls off a cliff.

Characters

* Arte O'Neale (Robert’s fiancé, Irish

gentry Gentry (from Old French ''genterie'', from ''gentil'', "high-born, noble") are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. Word similar to gentle imple and decentfamilies ''Gentry'', in its widest c ...

) * Robert Ffolliott (Arte’s fiancé, under sentence as a

, Irish gentry) * Captain Molineux (English Officer) * Claire Ffolliott (Robert's sister, Irish gentry) * Father Dolan (Robert’s Guardian, parish priest of Suilabeg,) * Conn (the shaughraun) * Corry Kinchela (a self-mad
squireen
* Harvey Duff (a police informant) * Sergeant Jones (Sergeant in English Detachment) * Mrs. O'Kelly (Conn's Mother) * Moya (Father Dolan's niece)

In popular culture

''The Shaughraun'' was met with great success upon its first production in New York (1874). Understandably so as the play possesses a sort of Fenian hero, and the United States is credited as the country where the Fenian movement was first initiated. It was met with equal success in its London production (1875) at the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto ...

in a production staged by

F. B. Chatterton Frederick Balsir Chatterton, known as F. B. Chatterton (17 September 1834– 18 February 1886) was a 19th-century British theatre manager and impresario who was lessee of the Theatre Royal in London's Drury Lane from 1866 to 1879.Robert Whela ...

. The play is attended by the protagonist, Newland Archer, in Edith Wharton's novel ''

The Age of Innocence ''The Age of Innocence'' is a 1920 novel by American author Edith Wharton. It was her twelfth novel, and was initially serialized in 1920 in four parts, in the magazine '' Pictorial Review''. Later that year, it was released as a book by D. Ap ...

'' which is set in 1870s New York.

References

External links

Theatre poster
from performances at Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh in 1885 {{DEFAULTSORT:Shaughraun Irish Republican Brotherhood 1874 plays Shaughraun