Half Hung MacNaghten
Encyclopedia
John MacNaghten or "Half-Hung MacNaghten" is a figure of 18th century romantic folklore in the North West of Ireland
.
MacNaghten was an impoverished member of the Anglo-Irish
gentry who claimed to have fallen in love with a young heiress, Mary Ann Knox of Prehen
, Derry
. However, her father did not give consent to their marriage. In November 1761, an attempt by MacNaghten and his followers to abduct Mary Ann from a carriage on a journey to Strabane
and elope
with her failed, when he shot and mortally wounded her by mistake. A court found MacNaghten guilty of murder
and he was sentenced to execution by hanging
. So distraught with grief was he by the death of his love that MacNaghten is alleged to have hurled himself from the gallows with such force that the rope broke. Some versions say that this was divine intervention and MacNaghten could not be hanged for a second time; others say that he could have used the cover of a sympathetic crowd to make good his escape but he chose not to. Instead John MacNaghten freely re-ascended the gallows to be hanged successfully.
Handing on the tale by word of mouth has led to an overly-gracious picture being painted of John MacNaghten. By the time of his death he was an habitual gambler and a fraudster. He was born into a landed Anglo-Irish family and attended Raphoe Royal school in County Donegal
. In 1740 he inherited his family estate and, in the same year, entered Trinity College, Dublin
. However, he was quickly enamoured of the extravagant lifestyle of Ascendancy
Dublin where he became a popular and colourful character. He developed an addiction to gambling and squandered away a large part of his inheritance, running up substantial gaming debts. By 1760 he was penniless having lost his estate in a card game. Mary Ann was the daughter of Andrew Knox, a wealthy land-owner and MP who lived on an estate at Prehen about 2 miles outside the City of Derry. She was already a substantial heiress having received some £6,000 and would have collected a further legacy if her brother died without issue. They first met when Mary Ann was only 15 when Andrew Knox was trying to help MacNaghten overcome his addiction. He visited Prehen regularly and they clearly enjoyed some sort of a rapport over a period of John MacNaghten's life that we might today describe as "rehab". Nonetheless by 1761 their relationship had run into difficulties. The more romantic versions of the tale portray MacNaghten and Mary Ann as lovers whose marriage was forbidden by her over-bearing father, however another view renders MacNaghten as a stalker from whom Andrew Knox was protecting his daughter.
The tale is one which is encased within the Ascendancy of 18th century Ireland. Only minor references are made to the peasantry who made up the vast part of the population of Ireland at that time and who were divorced by religion and culture from the lives of John MacNaghten, Mary Ann Knox and the society that they represented. Nonetheless the story has entered local folklore
. Tradition portrays John MacNaghten as the heroic rogue of Irish folklore who rebelled against the authority of the landowning class and, in challenging them, was seen to have fought against them. His immense loyalty to his servants and followers, especially his manservant John Dunlap who was hanged immediately after MacNaghten, has presented him in the myth as a champion of the under-class. As for the attempted kidnap of Mary Ann, judged with 21st century eyes it is an evil act, however the practice of abduction and marriage was prevalent in 18th century Ireland among young men of social standing but with little property. And, within their society, it was tolerated. The practice was the subject of the 2002 romantic comedy “The Abduction Club” starring Daniel Lapaine
and Sophia Myles.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
.
MacNaghten was an impoverished member of the Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish was a term used primarily in the 19th and early 20th centuries to identify a privileged social class in Ireland, whose members were the descendants and successors of the Protestant Ascendancy, mostly belonging to the Church of Ireland, which was the established church of Ireland until...
gentry who claimed to have fallen in love with a young heiress, Mary Ann Knox of Prehen
Prehen
Prehen is a small townland near the city of Derry, Northern Ireland. The name derives from the Irish word préachán meaning crow or rook.-Early history:Before the Plantation of Ulster in the early seventeenth century, Prehen was in the freehold of...
, Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
. However, her father did not give consent to their marriage. In November 1761, an attempt by MacNaghten and his followers to abduct Mary Ann from a carriage on a journey to Strabane
Strabane
Strabane , historically spelt Straban,is a town in west County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It contains the headquarters of Strabane District Council....
and elope
Elope
To elope, most literally, merely means to run away with a girl and to not come back to the point of origination. More specifically, elopement is often used to refer to a marriage conducted in sudden and secretive fashion, usually involving hurried flight away from one's place of residence together...
with her failed, when he shot and mortally wounded her by mistake. A court found MacNaghten guilty of murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
and he was sentenced to execution by hanging
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
. So distraught with grief was he by the death of his love that MacNaghten is alleged to have hurled himself from the gallows with such force that the rope broke. Some versions say that this was divine intervention and MacNaghten could not be hanged for a second time; others say that he could have used the cover of a sympathetic crowd to make good his escape but he chose not to. Instead John MacNaghten freely re-ascended the gallows to be hanged successfully.
Handing on the tale by word of mouth has led to an overly-gracious picture being painted of John MacNaghten. By the time of his death he was an habitual gambler and a fraudster. He was born into a landed Anglo-Irish family and attended Raphoe Royal school in County Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
. In 1740 he inherited his family estate and, in the same year, entered Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
. However, he was quickly enamoured of the extravagant lifestyle of Ascendancy
Protestant Ascendancy
The Protestant Ascendancy, usually known in Ireland simply as the Ascendancy, is a phrase used when referring to the political, economic, and social domination of Ireland by a minority of great landowners, Protestant clergy, and professionals, all members of the Established Church during the 17th...
Dublin where he became a popular and colourful character. He developed an addiction to gambling and squandered away a large part of his inheritance, running up substantial gaming debts. By 1760 he was penniless having lost his estate in a card game. Mary Ann was the daughter of Andrew Knox, a wealthy land-owner and MP who lived on an estate at Prehen about 2 miles outside the City of Derry. She was already a substantial heiress having received some £6,000 and would have collected a further legacy if her brother died without issue. They first met when Mary Ann was only 15 when Andrew Knox was trying to help MacNaghten overcome his addiction. He visited Prehen regularly and they clearly enjoyed some sort of a rapport over a period of John MacNaghten's life that we might today describe as "rehab". Nonetheless by 1761 their relationship had run into difficulties. The more romantic versions of the tale portray MacNaghten and Mary Ann as lovers whose marriage was forbidden by her over-bearing father, however another view renders MacNaghten as a stalker from whom Andrew Knox was protecting his daughter.
The tale is one which is encased within the Ascendancy of 18th century Ireland. Only minor references are made to the peasantry who made up the vast part of the population of Ireland at that time and who were divorced by religion and culture from the lives of John MacNaghten, Mary Ann Knox and the society that they represented. Nonetheless the story has entered local folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
. Tradition portrays John MacNaghten as the heroic rogue of Irish folklore who rebelled against the authority of the landowning class and, in challenging them, was seen to have fought against them. His immense loyalty to his servants and followers, especially his manservant John Dunlap who was hanged immediately after MacNaghten, has presented him in the myth as a champion of the under-class. As for the attempted kidnap of Mary Ann, judged with 21st century eyes it is an evil act, however the practice of abduction and marriage was prevalent in 18th century Ireland among young men of social standing but with little property. And, within their society, it was tolerated. The practice was the subject of the 2002 romantic comedy “The Abduction Club” starring Daniel Lapaine
Daniel Lapaine
Daniel Lapaine is an Australian actor.Born in Sydney, Australia, Lapaine graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1992. In 1994, he played David Van Arckle in P. J. Hogan's Muriel's Wedding...
and Sophia Myles.
External links
- Prehen House, a website about the former home of Mary Ann Knox.
- Guildhall Press, publishers of Half-Hanged MacNaghten.