The Wexford Massacre Irish folk Song Lyrics And Guitar Chords
Written by M.J. Barry. Recorded by The Grehan Sisters from Boyle in the County Of Roscommon. An Irish rebel song. Chords by Marc.(use a capo on the 2nd fret 4/4) The sheet music is included. Grehan Sisters first recorded The Orange And The Green song and also the Cricklewood song before Christy Moore. The Grehan Sisters, who are almost forgotten in folk music circles had a unique rawness about them which I admired.
THE WEXFORD MASSACRE
Oliver Cromwell's men stormed the town of Wexford while negotiations were still going on. It was Drogheda all over again. The two massacres left a mark on the consciousness of the people of Ireland best expressed by a priest who witnessed (and barely escaped from) the carnage at Wexford. The cleric's judgement of Cromwell as the "pest of hell" has lived on among the Irish people for three-and-a-half centuries. Even that great champion of Empire, Sir Winston Churchill, lays the guilt for the subsequent Irish Problem squarely at the feet of the Roundhead general: Cromwell in Ireland, disposing of overwhelming strength, and using it with merciless wickedness, debased the standards of human conduct and sensibly darkened the journey of mankind. Cromwell's Irish massacres... by an uncomplicated process of terror, by an iniquitous land settlement, by the virtual proscription of the Catholic religion, by the bloody deeds already described, he cut new gulfs between the nations and the creeds.... Upon us all there still lies "the curse of Cromwell."
Over two thousand were killed at Wexford. This ballad by Michael Joseph Barry, one of the Nation poets, bitterly charges that some three hundred of the casualties-mostly women and children-occurred in the marketplace of the town after the battle was over.
While Cromwell was loose in the South, Owen Roe O'Neill was working a curious double game in the North. To protect his army's rear, Owen Roe formed a strange alliance with the parliamentary commander Sir Charles Coote to secure Londonderry against the Scot royalists. O'Neill apparently planned to march south in the name of the Crown against the parliamentary armies of Jones and Cromwell with another parliamentary army covering his base! It was late times in any event. O'Neill was taken ill in the autumn and died at Cloughoughter Castle in early November. Owen Roe was buried alongside Slasher O'Reilly at the Franciscan Friary in Cavan.
Oliver Cromwell's men stormed the town of Wexford while negotiations were still going on. It was Drogheda all over again. The two massacres left a mark on the consciousness of the people of Ireland best expressed by a priest who witnessed (and barely escaped from) the carnage at Wexford. The cleric's judgement of Cromwell as the "pest of hell" has lived on among the Irish people for three-and-a-half centuries. Even that great champion of Empire, Sir Winston Churchill, lays the guilt for the subsequent Irish Problem squarely at the feet of the Roundhead general: Cromwell in Ireland, disposing of overwhelming strength, and using it with merciless wickedness, debased the standards of human conduct and sensibly darkened the journey of mankind. Cromwell's Irish massacres... by an uncomplicated process of terror, by an iniquitous land settlement, by the virtual proscription of the Catholic religion, by the bloody deeds already described, he cut new gulfs between the nations and the creeds.... Upon us all there still lies "the curse of Cromwell."
Over two thousand were killed at Wexford. This ballad by Michael Joseph Barry, one of the Nation poets, bitterly charges that some three hundred of the casualties-mostly women and children-occurred in the marketplace of the town after the battle was over.
While Cromwell was loose in the South, Owen Roe O'Neill was working a curious double game in the North. To protect his army's rear, Owen Roe formed a strange alliance with the parliamentary commander Sir Charles Coote to secure Londonderry against the Scot royalists. O'Neill apparently planned to march south in the name of the Crown against the parliamentary armies of Jones and Cromwell with another parliamentary army covering his base! It was late times in any event. O'Neill was taken ill in the autumn and died at Cloughoughter Castle in early November. Owen Roe was buried alongside Slasher O'Reilly at the Franciscan Friary in Cavan.
Intro: last two lines of the verses
They [G]knelt around the cross di[C]vine
The [G]matron and the [D]maid
They [G]bowed before redemption's [C]sign
And [G]fervent[D]ly they [C]prayed
Three [G]hundred [D]fair and [C]helpless [G]ones
Whose crime was [D]this a[C]lone
Their [G]valiant [D]husbands, [C]sires and [G]sons
Had battled [D]for their [C]own
Had [G]battled bravely but in [C]vain
The [G]Saxon won the [D]fight
The [G]Irish corpses strewed the [C]plain
Where [G]valour [D]slept with [C]right
And [G]now that [D]man of [C]demon [G]guilt
To fated [D]Wexford [C]flew
The [G]red blood [D]reeking [C]on his [G]hilt
Of hearts to [D]Erin [C]true
He [G]found them there, the young, the [C]old
The [G]maiden and the [D]wife
Their [G]guardians brave in death were [C]called
Who [G]dead fought [D]them the [C]strife
They [G]prayed for [D]mercy, [C]God on [G]high,
Before Thy [D]cross they [C]prayed
But [G]ruthless [D]Cromwell [C]bade them [G]die
To glut the [D]Saxon [C]blade
Three [G]hundred fell, the stifled [C]prayer
Was [G]quenched in women's [D]blood
Nor [G]youth nor age could move to [C]spare
From [G]slaughter's [D]crimson [C]flood
But [G]nations [D]keep a [C]stern ac[G]count
Of deeds that [D]tyrants [C]do
And [G]guiltless [D]blood to [C]Heaven will [G]mount
And Heaven a[D]venge it [C]too
They [G]knelt around the cross di[C]vine
The [G]matron and the [D]maid
They [G]bowed before redemption's [C]sign
And [G]fervent[D]ly they [C]prayed
Three [G]hundred [D]fair and [C]helpless [G]ones
Whose crime was [D]this a[C]lone
Their [G]valiant [D]husbands, [C]sires and [G]sons
Had battled [D]for their [C]own
Had [G]battled bravely but in [C]vain
The [G]Saxon won the [D]fight
The [G]Irish corpses strewed the [C]plain
Where [G]valour [D]slept with [C]right
And [G]now that [D]man of [C]demon [G]guilt
To fated [D]Wexford [C]flew
The [G]red blood [D]reeking [C]on his [G]hilt
Of hearts to [D]Erin [C]true
He [G]found them there, the young, the [C]old
The [G]maiden and the [D]wife
Their [G]guardians brave in death were [C]called
Who [G]dead fought [D]them the [C]strife
They [G]prayed for [D]mercy, [C]God on [G]high,
Before Thy [D]cross they [C]prayed
But [G]ruthless [D]Cromwell [C]bade them [G]die
To glut the [D]Saxon [C]blade
Three [G]hundred fell, the stifled [C]prayer
Was [G]quenched in women's [D]blood
Nor [G]youth nor age could move to [C]spare
From [G]slaughter's [D]crimson [C]flood
But [G]nations [D]keep a [C]stern ac[G]count
Of deeds that [D]tyrants [C]do
And [G]guiltless [D]blood to [C]Heaven will [G]mount
And Heaven a[D]venge it [C]too
🎵 Strumming Pattern (Key of G Major)
The song works best in 3/4 time — a slow waltz rhythm, just like many traditional Irish laments.
Think: ONE – two – three, ONE – two – three
🔸 Main Pattern (Gentle Folk Waltz)
↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑
(counted: 1 2 & 3 &)
or more simply:
Bass – Down – Up
That gives you a rolling, lilting feel — perfect for this song.
💡 Example (over G chord)
G chord
e|--3--------------------------|
B|--0--------------------------|
G|--0--------------------------|
D|--0--------------------------|
A|--2--------------------------|
E|--3--------------------------|
↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑
(1) (2 &) (3 &)
Use your thumb or pick for the first (bass) downstroke, and light wrist strums for beats 2 and 3.
Keep it soft and flowing, not choppy — think “storytelling over waves.”
🎻 Suggested Feel for Verses
Each line fits two or three measures of 3/4, so just keep the steady waltz rhythm and let the vocals float.
Example:
They [G]knelt around the cross di[C]vine
↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑
The [G]matron and the [D]maid
↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑
You can lightly accent beat 1 of every bar (the bass note) — this mirrors a bodhrán or heartbeat pulse typical of Irish airs.
✳️ Optional Simpler Beginner Pattern
If you’re newer to strumming:
↓ (pause) ↓ ↑
(count it: 1 – 2 & 3)
That keeps the gentle triple time feel without overcomplicating things.
🎼 Performance Tips
Use light palm muting on the bass notes for a darker tone.
Slow tempo (~70–80 BPM) — it’s meant to sound reverent and mournful.
Between verses, let the final chord ring out fully before starting the next.
Fingerpick softly for variation on the last verse — it’s very effective.
The song works best in 3/4 time — a slow waltz rhythm, just like many traditional Irish laments.
Think: ONE – two – three, ONE – two – three
🔸 Main Pattern (Gentle Folk Waltz)
↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑
(counted: 1 2 & 3 &)
or more simply:
Bass – Down – Up
That gives you a rolling, lilting feel — perfect for this song.
💡 Example (over G chord)
G chord
e|--3--------------------------|
B|--0--------------------------|
G|--0--------------------------|
D|--0--------------------------|
A|--2--------------------------|
E|--3--------------------------|
↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑
(1) (2 &) (3 &)
Use your thumb or pick for the first (bass) downstroke, and light wrist strums for beats 2 and 3.
Keep it soft and flowing, not choppy — think “storytelling over waves.”
🎻 Suggested Feel for Verses
Each line fits two or three measures of 3/4, so just keep the steady waltz rhythm and let the vocals float.
Example:
They [G]knelt around the cross di[C]vine
↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑
The [G]matron and the [D]maid
↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↓ ↑ ↑ ↓ ↑
You can lightly accent beat 1 of every bar (the bass note) — this mirrors a bodhrán or heartbeat pulse typical of Irish airs.
✳️ Optional Simpler Beginner Pattern
If you’re newer to strumming:
↓ (pause) ↓ ↑
(count it: 1 – 2 & 3)
That keeps the gentle triple time feel without overcomplicating things.
🎼 Performance Tips
Use light palm muting on the bass notes for a darker tone.
Slow tempo (~70–80 BPM) — it’s meant to sound reverent and mournful.
Between verses, let the final chord ring out fully before starting the next.
Fingerpick softly for variation on the last verse — it’s very effective.
