Brian Merriman
1749 - 1805
Born in Ennistymon, Co. Clare. He was a poet and schoolteacher. His famous poem, Cuairt an Mhean Oiche, written in his native Irish language, has well over a thousand lines. It has been translated into English as "The Midnight Court". The principal themes are the plight of young women who lack husbands, clerical celibacy, free love, and the misery of a young woman married to a withered old man. It is probably the most famous poem in the Irish languag and is written in the form of a vision or aisling. In commemoration of his life and work an Annual Merriman Summer School is held each year in County Clare