Background
MacNaghten was born into a landed Anglo-Irish family and attended Raphoe Royal school in County Donegal.
MacNaghten was born into a landed Anglo-Irish family and attended Raphoe Royal school in County Donegal.
The more romantic versions of the tale portray MacNaghten"s victim Mary Ann as his lover whose marriage was forbidden by her over-bearing father. In 1740, he inherited his family estate worth £500 a year and that same year entered Trinity College, Dublin. MacNaghten married the sister-in-law of the first earl of Massereene.
However, he was quickly enamoured of the extravagant lifestyle of Ascendancy Dublin where he became a popular and colourful character.
He developed an addiction to gambling and squandered away a large part of his inheritance, running up substantial gaming debts and by 1750 was threatened with arrest. His estate was sequestered and by 1760 he was penniless.
Knox was a wealthy land-owner and Member of Parliament for Donegal who lived on an estate at Prehen about 2 miles outside the City of Derry. MacNaghten and Mary Ann developed a relationship as the former visited Prehen regularly.
Nonetheless by 1761 their relationship had run into difficulties.
He was taken to Lifford Courthouse in Donegal, where a court found MacNaghten guilty of murder and he was sentenced to execution by hanging. MacNaghten hurled himself from the gallows with such force that the rope broke. He had the sympathy of the crowd who believed this was divine intervention for a man distraught with grief over the death of his love.
Despite the belief that MacNaghten could not be hanged a second time, he failed to use the cover of a sympathetic crowd to make good his escape and was hanged successfully at the second attempt, on 16 December 1761.
The tale is one which is encased within the Ascendancy of 18th century Ireland. Tradition portrays John MacNaghten as the heroic rogue of Irish folklore who rebelled against the authority of the landowning class and, in challenging them, was seen to have fought against them.
And, within their society, it was tolerated. The practice was the subject of the 2002 romantic comedy The Abduction Club, starring Daniel Lapaine and Sophia Myles.
McNaughton is buried at Patrick Street graveyard, Strabane, Company