Father John Murphy was the parish priest in Boolavogue, a small town in County Wexford in Ireland, who led his parishioners in battle during the 1798 uprising. For his participation, Father Murphy was tortured, flogged, decapitated, burned, and ultimately, had his head put on a stake to warn his countrymen against further rebellion. The song "Boolavogue" was written in his honour in 1898 a hundred years after the rebellion.