Charles Robert Maturin

The Milesian Chief, Works of Charles Robert Maturin, Vol. 3

The Milesian Chief, Maturin's third novel (1812), is the first of his novels to be set almost entirely in Ireland. After the 1800 Act of Union, the political and social turmoil caused by rebellion in the name of Irish independence disrupts the splendid fortunes of the talented and beautiful Armida, Italian-bred and English-born, who falls in love with Connal, last of an ancient Irish dynasty and leader of a desperate army of rebels. As she follows Connal's dire path, her exquisite if emotionally sterile life of art and music is transformed into an adventure in the wilds of western Ireland, the huts of the poor, bloody battlefields, rocky shores, and cavern hideouts, as English forces gradually draw closer to defeating the rebels. The sense of dread that overwhelms the characters and the entire countryside in their struggles against enemies, military as well as personal, is echoed in the passion of Armida and Connal, and enhanced by Maturin's vivid gothic touches.