Sarah Curran was the youngest daughter of John Philpot Curran, an Irish barrister celebrated for his defence of United Irishmen, and his wife Sarah Curran. She was the great love of the Irish patriot Robert Emmet, executed for treason in 1803.

John Philpot Curran was an Irish orator, politician, wit, and lawyer renowned for employing his skills in defence of civil and political liberty. He first won popular acclaim in 1780, as the only lawyer in his circuit willing to represent a Catholic priest horsewhipped by an Anglo-Irish lord. In the 1790s he was celebrated as a champion of Catholic emancipation and reform in the Irish Parliament and as defence counsel in court for United Irishmen facing charges of sedition and treason. He was vocal in his opposition to Britain’s incorporation of Ireland in a United Kingdom.