 It is more rightfully known as a piece by the Irish harper and composer Turlough O'Carolan called "Miss MacDermott" or "The Princess Royal".The "Arethusa" of the title is a frigate of the Royal Navy, named , which was originally built in 1757 as a French privateer under the name "Pélerine", renamed "Aréthuse" in early 1758 when purchased for the French Navy, from whom she was captured in 1759.According to Greek mythology, the nymph Arethusa, for whom the ship was named, was transformed by Artemis into a fountain.