Isabella Augusta, Lady Gregory (
née Persse; 15 March 1852 – 22 May 1932) was an Irish
dramatist,
folklorist and theatre manager. With
William Butler Yeats and
Edward Martyn, she co-founded the
Irish Literary Theatre and the
Abbey Theatre, and wrote numerous short works for both companies. Lady Gregory produced a number of books of retellings of stories taken from
Irish mythology. Born into a class that identified closely with British rule, her conversion to cultural nationalism, as evidenced by her writings, was emblematic of many of the political struggles to occur in Ireland during her lifetime.