Mary E. Balfour

Mary E. Balfour
Mary E. Balfour
Born	c. 1789; Limavady
Died	c. 1810; Belfast
Nationality	Irish

Mary E. Balfour (fl. 1789 – 1810) was an Irish poet,[1] who along with her original poems translated Irish poetry into English.[2] She is believed to be Belfast's only 19th century female playwright.[3]

Biography

Mary E. Balfour was born on 24 January in Limavady, with some sources giving the year as 1755. Others believe this date seems unlikely given the marriage of her parents, John Balfour and a daughter of Dr Samuel Moore of Derry, in January 1778. This could make her year of birth 1789, which better aligns with the dates of birth of her younger sisters and the characters in her poems. Her father was appointed rector of Errigal, County Londonderry. After the death of her father, Balfour and her sisters had to support themselves by teaching, initially in Newtown Limavady, then in Belfast.[1] Balfour was a member of the committee of the Harp Society. She contributed four translations of Irish poems into English to A General Collection of the Ancient Music of Ireland (1809) by Edward Bunting.[4][2]

Her only book of poems Hope: a poetical essay with various other poems (Belfast, 1810) contains a variety of poems with classical themes, and a set of poems that were intended to be words to the Irish songs collected by Bunting. From her work it looks like Balfour was one of the earliest Irish writers interested in music and folklore. Her 1814 stage play Kathleen O'Neil: a grand national melodrama in three acts was published anonymously, and was about a female deer hunters, was staged in Belfast.[1]

Her date of death is unconfirmed. A note written by John McKinley in a 1819 volume of poems states that be believes she had died.[1] It is believed she died in Belfast.[3]

References

Lunney, Linde (2009). "Balfour, Mary E.". In McGuire, James; Quinn, James (eds.). Dictionary of Irish Biography. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Schirmer, Gregory A. (1998). Out of what began : a history of Irish poetry in English. New York: Cornell University Press. pp. 83–84. ISBN 9781501744815.
"The Hidden Experience: Women's Writing". Culture Northern Ireland. 5 September 2006. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
Welch, Robert (1988). A history of verse translation from the Irish, 1789-1897. Buckinghamshire: Colin Smythe. pp. 54–55. ISBN 9780861402496.

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[Lunney-1] Lunney, Linde (2009). "Balfour, Mary E.". In McGuire, James; Quinn, James (eds.). Dictionary of Irish Biography. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

[Schirmer-2] Schirmer, Gregory A. (1998). Out of what began : a history of Irish poetry in English. New York: Cornell University Press. pp. 83–84. ISBN 9781501744815.

[CultureNI-3] "The Hidden Experience: Women's Writing". Culture Northern Ireland. 5 September 2006. Retrieved 13 January 2020.

[Welch-4] Welch, Robert (1988). A history of verse translation from the Irish, 1789-1897. Buckinghamshire: Colin Smythe. pp. 54–55. ISBN 9780861402496.