Mary Colum Mary Colum Mary Colum (née Maguire, June 14, 1884 – October 22, 1957) was an Irish literary critic and author, who also co-founded a literary journal. Mary Gunning Maguire was born in Collooney, County Sligo, daughter of Charles Maguire and Catherine Gunning. Her mother died in 1895, leaving her to be reared by her grandmother Catherine in Ballisodare, County Sligo. She attended boarding school in St. Louis' Convent, Monaghan. Educated at Royal University, Trinity she was founder of the Twilight Literary Society which led her to meet W. B. Yeats. She regularly attended the Abbey Theatre and was a frequent
W. B. Yeats in 1905, the court heard allegations that he had sexually assaulted Iseult, then eleven. At fifteen, she proposed to Yeats. In 1917, he proposed to Iseult, but was rejected. That September, Yeats proposed to 25-year-old Georgie Hyde-Lees (1892–1968), known as George, whom he had met through Olivia Shakespear. Despite warnings from her friends—"George ... you can't. He must be dead"—Hyde-Lees accepted, and the two were married on 20 October. Their marriage was a success, in spite of the age difference, and in spite of Yeats's feelings of remorse and regret during their honeymoon. The couple went on to have two