This review paper focuses on dislocations and plastic deformation in magnesium oxide crystals. MgO is an archetype ionic ceramic with refractory properties which is of interest in several fields of applications such as ceramic materials fabrication, nano-scale engineering and Earth sciences. In its bulk single crystal shape, MgO can deform up to few percent plastic strain due to dislocation plasticity processes that strongly depend on external parameters such as pressure, temperature, strain rate, or crystal size. This review describes how a combined approach of macro-mechanical tests, multi-scale modeling, nano-mechanical tests, and high pressure experiments and simulations have progressively helped to improve our understanding of MgO mechanical behavior and elementary dislocation-based processes under stress.