<P> The ballad's singer is told that the "pikes must be together at the rising of the moon" to engage in rebellion . The pikemen gather, but are defeated . Despite the loss, the listener is told that there are those who will "follow in their footsteps" to again revolt . </P> <P> The ballad has taken the tune of another Irish ballad, "The Wearing of the Green", and was first published in John Keegan Casey's 1866 collection of poems and songs, A Wreath of Shamrocks . The lyrics were written by Casey (1846--70), the "Fenian Poet", who based the poem on the failed 1798 uprising in Granard, County Longford . </P> <P> The ballad has been in circulation since circa 1865 . The earliest verifiable date found in publication is 1867 . </P> <P> The ballad refers to the outbreak of the 1798 rebellion, as United Irish rebels convey the order to rise . The air of hope and optimism associated with the ultimately doomed rebellion was intended to provide inspiration for rebels preparing to take to the field in another ill - fated venture, the Fenian rebellion of 1867 . </P>

When was the rising of the moon written